


Background

by Rosalind2013



Series: Perception [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alya Césaire Knows, Alya-centric, Awesome Nino Lahiffe, Bad Puns, Dork Chat Noir, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Friendship, Good Friend Alya Césaire, Identity Reveal, Oblivious Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Plagg Being Plagg, Plagg Is An Evil Mastermind, So Is Tikki, Supportive Tikki, Trolling, We Are All Alya Césaire
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-10
Updated: 2018-07-11
Packaged: 2019-05-05 01:26:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 22,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14606169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosalind2013/pseuds/Rosalind2013
Summary: Alya finds that knowing Ladybug's secret identity can be rather fun, especially when Marinette denies any attraction to her crime-fighting partner. Loosely connected one-shot collection. Canon divergent AU.





	1. Background

**Author's Note:**

> I'm going to be working on cross posting this to Ao3. It'll be a long road, but I'll get there eventually!

Marinette sat cross-legged in her floor as she repaired a tear in her father's jacket with expert ease. Tikki munched on a cookie while sitting on the desk, and hummed contentedly.

"So…I know we're still getting used to this Ladybug thing, but I gotta know-" a voice drifted to Marinette from atop her bed. Alya rested her head on her crossed arms, peering at her best friend from atop the mattress.

"Know what?" the dark haired girl asked, blue eyes flashing with confusion as she diverted her attention to her friend.

"What's the deal with Chat Noir?" Alya asked, seeming genuinely curious.

Marinette rolled her eyes, "What about him?" Alya raised an eyebrow, "Well, he obviously has a thing for you, girl. Have you already turned him down?"

The girl giggled in response, "Not exactly? He hasn't said anything, so I haven't needed to reply."

The reporter shook her head, "Oh, girl. That's gonna be one tough convo."

Marinette shook her head, "I don't think so. Chat knows I don't see him that way." Alya watched her, a thoughtful expression on her face.

"And why is that?" she asked. Marinette nearly poked herself with a pin, "What?"

The bespectacled girl shook her head with a friendly smile, "Why don't you see him that way?"

Marinette regarded her disbelievingly. "I love Adrien," she replied, as if the answer should have been obvious.

Alya shrugged "Well yeah, but you can barely say hi to him, let alone hold a conversation with the boy. You don't have a problem talking to Chat Noir, though."

"Because I don't like Chat Noir like that," Marinette insisted. Alya frowned, "What's not to like about him? He's sweet, romantic, head over heels in love with you, and 100% smoking hot."

Marinette looked scandalized, "Alya!"

The reporter fixed her best friend with a level gaze, "Look me in the eye and tell me you don't think Chat Noir is objectively attractive."

"I don't," she insisted, though her gaze flickered to the left nervously.

"You're lying. He's totally your type. Now, look me in the eye and tell me you don't enjoy his company," Alya pressed.

This time, Marinette's gaze didn't waver, "I  _do_  enjoy his company, Alya. He's my partner, and I trust him with my life."

A silence settled between the two, and Alya appeared noticeably smug.

"I thought you wanted me to be with Adrien. Now you're trying to get me to notice Chat Noir?" the pig-tailed girl demanded a bit harshly.

"Marinette, I just want you to be happy. This thing with Adrien…It hasn't really gone anywhere yet. I just want to make sure you know you have options. I don't know him, but from where I'm sitting, Chat Noir looks like the kind of guy who could make you happy if you gave him the chance," Alya explained.

"He's a big flirt," Marinette argued weakly.

The blogger chuckled, "Only with you. Cat Boy has never used a pickup line on me, or anyone who submits content to the Ladyblog. Believe me, they'd brag if he did."

"He flirted with Marinette," she countered defensively.

" _You're_  Marinette!" Alya exclaimed with a loud snort.

The girl in question crossed her arms defiantly, "He doesn't know that."

"Maybe he does, subconsciously," Alya offered.

Tikki finally made her presence known, "That could very well be true, Marinette."

The girl looked like she'd been betrayed, "Tikki! You're supposed to be on my side."

The kwami giggled, "I am! You have to admit, Chat Noir can be very charming sometimes." Marinette huffed, "Can we talk about something else, please?"

A chorus of laughter resounded from both Tikki and Alya. "Sure thing," Alya replied goodnaturedly.

"Did you finish the homework?" the blogger asked, successfully changing the topic.

"Yeah, there wasn't an akuma today, so I've been able to get a lot of things done!" Marinette replied with a bright smile.

Alya nodded and gestured to the computer, "Do you mind if I use your computer to work on the Ladyblog?"

Marinette gave a small hum of consent as she continued to meticulously stitch the fabric between her fingers. Alya rolled off of the bed lazily and made her way over to the computer, tapping the keyboard to wake up the screen.

"Oh, girl. This is too much," she deadpanned from her spot at the computer. Marinette didn't glance up, "What?"

Alya gestured madly toward the screen, "How many pictures of Adrien are in this collage? You don't think you have enough posters on the wall?"

Marinette had the good grace to look sheepish, "I think it became part of my décor at some point. It only made sense to have my computer match my room." Alya shook her head, " _Pink_  would've matched your décor."

Tikki remained tactfully silent, and Marinette was eternally grateful that she didn't chime in to take Alya's side.

The future reporter decided to drop the subject and pulled up the webpage that allowed her to monitor the Ladyblog.

"Ooh, lots of comments on yesterday's akuma attack. Time to weed out the trolls," she murmured as she began scrolling.

"I think it's nice that you monitor the comments," Marinette stated with a smile. Alya grinned proudly, "I won't stand for bullying, online or off."

"You're a hero too, you know," Tikki asserted with an encouraging sweep of her tiny arms.

"You're too sweet," Alya responded with a flattered blush.

"Alya, defender of the internet!" Marinette exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air for dramatic effect. The brunette tossed a pillow at her best friend's face.

"Now you're just making fun of me," she complained.

Marinette snatched it out of the air, and giggled. "I'm not! I promise!"

Alya's phone rang, and she answered it promptly. "Yeah, I'm still at Marinette's. Okay, no problem! I'll be there in a few. Love you! Bye." Blue eyes regarded her questioningly, and she shrugged.

"My mom got called into work. Some big food critic stopped by for a surprise visit, so I need to babysit!" she explained.

"Oh! Let me know if you need any help, okay?" Marinette offered, pausing in her stitching.

"I'm a master babysitter, girl. I got this."

With that, she took her leave, patting Tikki on the head before climbing down through the trapdoor. Marinette finished patching up her father's jacket a few minutes later, and flopped down in her computer chair, intent on checking out some of the newest trends.

She tapped the keyboard to wake the screen. Marinette shrieked in surprise and fell out of her chair, staring in horror at the image that had replaced her beautiful Adrien collage as her desktop background.

Instead, a high-definition picture of Chat Noir stared back at her.

"ALYA!"


	2. Elusive

"Miraculous Ladybug!"

Alya watched in wonder as the magic swirled over the city and set everything right. No matter how many times she saw it, the novelty never seemed to wear off.

She promptly switched off the recording on her phone and turned to watch her best friend interact with her crime-fighting partner.

"Pound it!"

His fingers lingered a bit longer than necessary, and he stared at her longingly as she comforted the akuma victim.

"Good job, Chat!" she praised, and his slitted eyes looked like they would bulge right out of their sockets.

He quickly schooled his expression into a flirtatious smirk, "You must be rubbing off on me, My Lady."

He brought her hand to his lips, only for her to quickly yank it back.

"Down, kitty," she reprimanded him with a giggle.

"See you later, Chat!" she called, before zipping off into the horizon.

Alya frowned thoughtfully as she watched the disappointment flash across Chat Noir's face. He sighed, and a small adoring smile pulled at the corners of his lips.

"See you later, Bugaboo."

"Cute nickname," Alya commented, enjoying the way he flinched when he realized he wasn't alone.

"Uh, hey. You…run the Ladyblog, right?" he asked, sheepishly rubbing his neck.

Something about his mannerisms tugged at her memory, but she pushed it away in favor of finally getting to talk to Chat Noir one-on-one.

"Yep! Alya Césaire," she introduced herself, and extended her hand invitingly. He grinned widely and shook her hand. A firm but gentle grip, she noted.

"Chat Noir, at your service," he stated with a quick bow.

"Are you after an interview? Ladybug won't be back anytime soon," he explained, brimming with what she assumed was false confidence, as his ring beeped, marking that he had two minutes of his transformation left.

"Oh no, I don't need a Ladybug interview. Actually, it would be pretty cool to interview  _you_  one of these days," she explained with an encouraging smile. He stared back at her blankly, and pointed to his chest, a question in his eyes.

"Me?"

Alya simply nodded, and an enthusiastic grin stretched across Chat Noir's face.

"Sure! I'm actually free right now. Give me like ten minutes to recharge?"

The blogger laughed, "Sure thing, Chat Noir! Meet me in the park over there?"

"You got it!" he replied before breaking into a run and scaling the first building in his path.

The brunette wandered over to the park and picked out a secluded bench, thinking about how exciting it would be to learn more about Chat Noir. The fans seemed to prefer Ladybug, but she knew how important he was in defeating akumas.

Now that she knew who Ladybug was, her curiosity refocused on the mysterious black cat. Despite his ostentatious behavior, he seemed to prefer to stay out of the spotlight.

He often hung back and allowed Ladybug to handle the press, and Alya definitely wanted to know why.

A few minutes later, he dropped down in front of her, landing in a graceful crouch. His green eyes flicked upward as he met her gaze, and drew up to his full height as he stood.

"You're a lot taller than I thought," she commented. He chuckled softly and took a seat beside her, lounging on the bench in a carefree way that she had to admire a bit, if only for his confidence.

"So I'll ask you a few questions, and you'll answer them. If you want to skip a question, just say 'pass', and I'll move on," Alya explained, hitting the record button on her phone and positioning it so that her interviewee was perfectly framed on the screen.

"Okay. Make sure to get my good side," he joked, tilting his head to the side and shifting into a charismatic pose that could easily belong on the cover of a magazine.

He smirked playfully, and Alya just knew that there would be a Chat Noir fanclub the instant she uploaded this interview.

"Hey Ladybloggers! This is Alya Césaire, coming at ya with another exclusive interview. Chat Noir is here to answer some questions," she announced, while he waved and continued to hold his model-worthy pose.

"We'll start off simple. What's your favorite color?"

He shifted, and looked toward the sky with a candid grin, "Definitely blue."

"What's the best part of being Chat Noir?"

"You mean besides working with Ladybug?" he said with a sly wink.

Alya laughed, "You need a better answer than that!"

He tapped his chin with a single clawed fingertip, "Honestly, I love the freedom. And I get to run off to protect Paris from supervillains. That's pretty awesome."

"Do you and Ladybug hang out when you're not wearing masks?" Alya asked, even though she knew the answer.

"No, Ladybug and I don't know each other's identities," he clarified, his expression shifting from serious to playful.

"For good reason, too. If Ladybug were to see my real face, she wouldn't be able to resist me," he quipped with a flirtatious grin.

Alya's eyes widened at his shameless remark. He was hitting on Ladybug, and didn't seem to mind that she wasn't even there to hear it.

She shouldn't be surprised, since Marinette told her exactly how bold he could be, but it was different to see it in person.

The cat boy had game. How could Marinette be so completely unaffected by his charm?

"What about Cataclysm? Can you tell me how it works?"

He shrugged, "Ladybug's thing is good luck. Her Lucky Charm is creation. I'm basically the opposite of Ladybug. Cataclysm is destruction and bad luck."

"Ah, that makes perfect sense. You guys balance out, then." Alya stated.

"I guess so," he replied with an easy grin.

"Why don't you speak to the reporters after attacks?"

Chat Noir subtly shifted into another – more casual – pose, which she wouldn't have noticed if she hadn't spent so much time helping Marinette stalk Adrien.

"Honestly, I'd rather let Ladybug handle that stuff. I may look like an  _attention_   _hound_ , but I'm really more of a  _cool cat_ ," he remarked, shooting finger-guns at the camera.

Alya snickered, "Duly noted. Don't you ever wish you got more positive attention? People tend to overlook you for Ladybug."

The blond boy shrugged, his tail flicking behind him. "Nah. She's awesome, and she deserves all the attention she gets. I'm happy as long as she is, so it doesn't  _bug_  me too much."

"Oh my gosh, does your tail move?" Alya asked. His eyes widened a bit in surprise at the topic change, clearly displaying his slitted pupils for the camera.

"Yeah. It's good for balance," he explained, cat ears flicking up into an alert position. Alya gasped, "That's so cool! You don't have a tail in your normal life, do you?"

Chat Noir snatched his tail out of the air and held it up for the camera. "Nope. This isn't even a real tail. It's actually a belt."

"How does it move?" Alya pressed.

He smirked coyly, "Magic."

The blogger laughed, "Well, there you have it, straight from Chat Noir himself. Stay on the lookout for more updates! Alya out."

She turned the recording off and placed the phone on the bench between them, so that he could clearly see she wasn't recording anymore.

"Thanks for agreeing to the interview, Chat Noir," she said gratefully.

"No problem. It was fun," he replied, a wide smile stretched across his face.

Alya smiled kindly, "Do you mind if I ask you what's up between you and Ladybug?"

He stiffened, looking very much like a deer in headlights, "Uh…"

The girl crossed her heart, "Strictly off-the-record. Between you and me."

He deliberated for a moment, green eyes darting to and fro. Finally, he sighed heavily, shoulders falling forward in a slump.

"Nothing. There's nothing between me and Ladybug," he finally replied.

"But you want there to be," she finished for him.

He smiled wistfully, "I'm pretty obvious."

She chuckled good-naturedly, "Yeah. That's not a bad thing though. At least you're sincere."

He kicked a rock with the toe of his boot, "She's just so…amazing. She's stronger than anyone I've ever met, and she knows a side of me that no one else really does. She's not afraid to stand up for what she believes in, and I  _love_  that about her."

Alya's eyes widened, "You love her."

The superhero shifted, "I didn't say that."

The girl laughed, "You're not as smooth as you think you are."

He gave her a shy smile that looked out of place on Chat Noir's face, "You got me."

"I think it's sweet," Alya cooed.

Chat pouted theatrically, "Glad you think it's funny." Alya's phone buzzed, and she glanced down to the screen to see a text from her best friend.

"I think Marinette misses you," he remarked. Alya looked surprised, "You know Marinette?"

He nodded, "She was targeted by akuma a few times."

Alya gained a mischievous glint in her eye, "What did you think of her?"

He seemed a bit confused, but answered nonetheless. "She's really cool. She thinks on her feet and she's really brave. She kinda reminds me of Ladybug, in a way."

Alya's grin grew even wider as she choked back laughter, "That's high praise coming from you, huh?"

Against everything she expected from Chat Noir, he blushed. Green cat eyes darted down to stare at a spot on the ground, and his ears flattened against his head as his cheeks took on a rosy hue.

He suddenly jumped to his feet, having finally decided that enough was enough.

"Thanks for the interview. I really appreciate it," he said in a rather sincere tone of voice.

Then he was off, leaping across buildings with distinctly feline grace.

Alya finally allowed her laughter to burst free, and wiped at her eyes as her giggles finally died down. She picked up her phone and nearly skipped to the bakery.

"Alya! Where were you?" Marinette asked, looking extremely worried. The brunette proudly presented her phone, which displayed the video she took of Chat Noir.

"Exclusive interview with Paris's elusive superhero," Alya announced excitedly. Marinette rolled her eyes, "Elusive?"

"He poses for photos, but he's never been interviewed before. That makes him elusive. It ups the intrigue," Alya explained.

"Whatever you say," Marinette replied with a laugh.

The blogger grinned, "You didn't tell me his cute little ears were so expressive. And his tail  _moves_! How could you leave details like that out?"

The pig-tailed girl snickered, "Cute little ears? Maybe you're the one who should go out with Chat."

Alya shook her head, "Uh-uh. He's  _your_  Kitty."

Marinette looked on warily as her best friend's mouth stretched into a diabolical grin. "I asked him what he thought of Marinette."

"You didn't."

"I did. Guess what he said?"

Marinette rolled her eyes, "Something ridiculous?"

"He said you remind him of Ladybug."

Alya laughed while her best friend choked on nothing but air.


	3. Fanclub

As Alya and Marinette walked through the halls of their school, they noticed a distinct change in the color pallet of many students' wardrobes. Rather, they noticed that black seemed to be very  _in_  at the moment.

"Alya, what's going on?" Marinette asked, eyeing a girl who walked past wearing all black and a headband with cat ears.

The blogger laughed, "I thought you stayed on top of all the trends, Miss Future Designer."

The girl simply looked perplexed, "I do. That's why I'm so confused!"

Alya shook with laughter, "Marinette, my Chat Noir interview went viral. According to social media, he's the new hottest thing in Paris. His fanclub is small compared to Ladybug's, but it's really growing."

Marinette only looked more confused, "Because you interviewed him?"

Alya laughed and nodded, "Paris got to see a little of his personality, and I guess a lot of people thought he was pretty cool."

The dark haired girl giggled, "Chat Noir? Cool?"

"Are you guys talking about Chat Noir?" a female voice asked.

Aurore Beauréal stood behind them, a pair of cat ears on her head. Alya nodded, and the girl beamed.

"He's incredible," Aurore sighed, a faraway look in her eye. "I've never really seen him up close, so I didn't know how cute he was until I saw your video," she explained.

Marinette looked more lost than anything else, so Alya spoke instead.

"He was really cool about giving me an interview. A really nice guy," she replied, elbowing Marinette playfully.

Aurore promptly sauntered away, leaving the two girls alone.

"What strange world have I awakened to?" Marinette groaned.

"Hey Marinette!"

The girl spun around, her heart racing as she met the vibrant green eyes of her crush.

"H-Hey Adrien! How's up? I mean, what! What's up?" she stammered with a smile that was just a bit too wide.

"I…really don't know. Why is everyone dressed like Chat Noir?" he asked, looking almost as lost as Marinette had. Alya held up her phone proudly, "My interview! His fanclub exploded pretty fast after people saw the video."

Adrien smiled shyly, and it looked much more at home on his face than it did on Chat Noir's.

"They really like him that much?" he asked, a tentative note in his voice.

Alya pushed her previous thoughts aside as she puzzled over his strange reaction to her explanation.

"Yeah, I don't know who  _wouldn't_  like him after seeing what he's really like," she explained.

Inexplicably, Adrien's smile grew, "That's pretty great for Chat Noir, huh?"

Marinette looked like she couldn't decide whether to melt into a puddle or join the conversation.

"I guess it is pretty great for Chat Noir. He's just as important as Ladybug. Maybe it's time Paris sees that too," the pig-tailed girl offered with a thoughtful smile.

So she decided to join the conversation. Alya gave her a subtle thumbs-up. Adrien gave Marinette a full smile, dazzling her into silence.

"You're amazing, Marinette," he stated, before strutting off to join Nino.

"Eep!" she squeaked, having lost all control of words. Alya threw an arm over her shoulders and guided her toward the classroom. It wasn't until they were seated that her best friend was able to pull herself together.

"He said I was amazing," she breathed dreamily.

"He did," Alya confirmed.

"He's so perfect," Marinette sighed.

Alya shook her head, "Nobody's perfect, Mari. You're just infatuated."

"You're right," she admitted, looking rather sheepish.

"Do you think I really have a chance with someone like Adrien?" she asked, staring out at the empty classroom.

"Maybe if you start actually talking to him," Alya suggested with a playful nudge.

Marinette sighed, "How do I do that?"

Alya thought for a second, "Just pretend he's Chat Noir, or something."

"That's it! Just pretend he's Chat Noir. No big deal! I talk to Chat Noir all the time," Marinette rambled nervously.

As if on cue, Adrien and Nino entered the classroom. He paused in the midst of their conversation and smiled at Marinette, who waved back nervously. Nino gestured around the room, where most of the girls who had just entered were wearing cat ears.

"Dude, I think Chat Noir has stolen your fans," Nino joked, playfully nudging his friend. Adrien laughed, "I don't mind. Cats are pretty…"

"No, dude." Nino deadpanned.

" _Meow_ -velous," Adrien finished with a devilish smirk that Chat Noir would be proud of.

"If you're going to spout off terrible puns, at least wear these while you do it, Adrikins," Chloé stated as she walked past, snatching Sabrina's cat ears and roughly plopping them on his head.

Alya snickered, "You really do look like Chat Noir."

" _Fur_  real?" Marinette muttered, sarcasm dripping from her words.

They all grew silent and turned to stare at Marinette, who looked utterly unrepentant.

"Nice pun, Marinette. Gotta have a positive cat-itude," he replied with a sly wink.

Marinette's expression remained neutral, "That's gotta be the worst pun I've ever heard."

Adrien swept into a dramatic bow, "I do my best."

"Whatever you say, Kitty," Marinette drawled. Adrien's eyes widened, and Marinette floundered, "I-I mean! Because you're wearing cat ears!"

Adrien relaxed and joined into the laughter with Nino and Alya. The pig-tailed girl flushed with embarrassment, and nervously chuckled along.

"I'm gonna return these to Sabrina," he explained, taking the headband off before walking away.

Marinette allowed her head to drop onto the table, wallowing in shame at her nickname slip-up.

Alya snorted, "Girl, maybe you should pretend he's somebody other than Chat Noir."

Marinette groaned, "I blame you for this."


	4. Denial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit out there compared to my previous one-shots, but still good? Yeah, still good.

Alya Césaire sat on her best friend's floor, surrounded by blankets and pillows while she read their assigned book for class. There was a slight chill in the air, and she was grateful for the warm cup of tea that sat next to her.

"Alya! What is this?" Marinette demanded, hands on her hips in a remarkably Ladybug-like pose.

The blogger seemed utterly unfazed by the volume of the demand.

"What's what?" she drawled, flipping the page of her book.

Marinette plopped down beside her, phone in hand, and a testy expression on her face.

"Ladybug and Chat Noir dating?" the blue-eyed girl read aloud, making air quotes with her free hand.

"Oh, you're talking about my latest post, huh?" Alya responded in a tone that almost seemed bored.

"Yes! We're not dating! You know that better than anyone," Marinette exclaimed disbelievingly.

"Oh, Marinette. As the clueless citizen that I am, I have no way of knowing if Ladybug and Chat Noir aren't dating," the brunette replied with a conspiratorial wink.

The dark haired girl threw her head back with an exasperated growl, "Alya, whatever did I do to deserve this?"

Alya shook her head, "So what if a few people think you're dating him? It's not like dating Chat Noir would be a punishment, Mari. He's a really nice guy."

"But he's not  _the_  guy," she argued, pigtails bobbing as she slumped forward. Alya shrugged, "You don't know that for sure until you give him a chance."

Marinette glared at her best friend, "Seriously?"

"Sure. He might actually be the cat's meow," the blogger replied with a cheeky grin.

Marinette very calmly picked up a pillow and eyed it appraisingly. Alya looked on curiously, until she suddenly began bashing her in the head with the fluffy object.

"Ow! Ow! Marinette! Stop!" Alya shouted.

"You deserve it," Marinette giggled.

"You're gonna spill my tea!" the girl complained.

"You should've thought of that before you made a cat joke," Marinette snapped as she continued to mercilessly whack her friend with the pillow.

Alya finally collapsed backward in a dramatic show of defeat.

"Looks like this is the end. Pillowed to death by my best friend," she cried melodramatically. Marinette smacked her one last time for good measure.

Tikki yawned from her spot on the chaise, and Marinette winced sheepishly, "Sorry, Tikki! I didn't mean to wake you."

The kwami blinked, still drowsy from her nap, "It's fine. It was probably time for me to wake up anyway." Marinette presented her with a cookie, which she took with a grateful smile.

"What time is it?" Tikki asked, though she still appeared to be half asleep. Alya shrugged, "Almost nine. Why?"

The kwami thought for a second and turned to Marinette, "Weren't you supposed to meet Chat Noir at the Eiffel Tower soon?"

The girl suddenly jumped to her feet, "Ohmygosh! I forgot!" She immediately began rushing around her room, searching for her shoes.

"Why do you meet him on Wednesdays again?" Alya asked, looking rather confused. Marinette smiled as she finally located her other shoe and pulled it on.

"It's a weekly check-in. We usually sit and talk strategy and catch up. We don't get to talk much during akuma attacks, so the team-building has to happen sometime," Marinette explained.

The blogger nodded, "Of course, of course. That makes perfect sense." Marinette moved toward the window, and Tikki floated up to her.

"Don't forget the food, Marinette," the kwami reminded her. "Oops!" the girl exclaimed as she rushed down the stairs to pack her reusable grocery bag with snacks.

"Ready to go!" she announced, nearing the window again. "Do you mind covering for me if my parents come, Alya?"

Alya waved dismissively, "No sweat, girl. Now hurry along before you're late for your date."

"Tikki, spots on!"

A flash of pink light and a toss of a magic yo-yo later, and Ladybug was zipping over the rooftops.

She was halfway to the Eiffel Tower before she finally realized what Alya had said.

She mumbled under her breath, even though her best friend wasn't there to hear it,

"It's  _not_  a date!"

* * *

**Bonus** :

"Do you keep tabs on the Ladyblog, Chat Noir?" Ladybug asked, never taking her eyes off of the twinkling lights of the city.

The boy who sat beside her let out a breathy laugh, as if he was in on a joke that she wasn't.

"Occasionally."

She finally turned to look at him, meeting his curious gaze with an amused smile.

"Did you see the article that girl Alya posted today?" Ladybug asked, the words slipping out before she could stop them.

"I did," he replied evenly, grabbing another macaroon from the box between them.

They lapsed into silence, the nighttime sounds of the city filling the air with life despite the lack of conversation.

"I was upset that people were making assumptions, at first," the spotted heroine explained. He gave her a small, but genuine smile, "And then?"

"And then I realized that it doesn't matter what they think," she finished, sparks of confidence dancing in her eyes. Chat Noir found it rather hard to breathe when she fixed him with her determined gaze.

He took a shuddering breath as he realized that he'd unconsciously drifted closer to her, and was leaning over the mostly-eaten box of macaroons. He felt a brief moment of panic at his accidental invasion of her space, before it morphed into confusion. She hadn't leaned in, but she hadn't pushed him away yet, either.

The fire in her eyes died down, and her gaze became something more conflicted. "Oh, Kitty," she murmured sadly, reaching out to ruffle his hair before turning her gaze back to the city skyline.

As if her gaze had been magnetic, as soon as it was turned away from him, he was able to draw back into his original position. He shook his head, as if to clear it of the fuzzy feeling, and smirked as he snatched the last macaroon.

"So, apparently I have a fanclub now," he said, holding the treat instead of eating it. Ladybug laughed, "So you do. It's about time they started to notice you."

"I'd be much more satisfied if  _you_  would notice me, Bugaboo," he flirted smoothly. Ladybug rolled her eyes and reached for another macaroon, only for her fingers to brush the bottom of the box.

Chat Noir proudly displayed the macaroon between his clawed fingers, "Last one. Wanna share?" The girl in red laughed, "You can have it, Kitty."

"Aw, I thought we could accidentally kiss,  _Lady and the Tramp_  style," he joked playfully.

"That only works with spaghetti, Chat," Ladybug replied with a chuckle.

He laughed, nudging her with his elbow, "It was worth a shot."

She joined in his laughter, "It was a  _long_  shot."

Chat Noir broke the dessert in half and offered Ladybug the bigger piece. She smiled at his uncanny ability to switch from being a flirt to a perfect gentleman in mere seconds.

She accepted her half of the macaroon, and they both gazed out at the city they were sworn to protect.

Marinette glanced over at Chat Noir, who looked completely at peace surrounded by the twinkling city lights, and realized how date-like it would look if someone snapped a picture of them like this.

"It's  _not_  a date!" she shrieked.

Chat blinked, "Are you okay, My Lady?"


	5. Project

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Humor and bonding!

If Alya was going to be forced to submit a project for her least favorite subject, at least she was assigned a partner who loved physics.

Though it was a Saturday, she was up bright and early to get a head start on it, not because she was particularly thrilled to do it, but because her partner's schedule was ridiculously packed.

Marinette would probably faint if she ever ended up in this situation.

She approached the imposing looking gate and pushed the button. A severe female voice emitted from the intercom, "State your business." Alya suppressed the urge to roll her eyes, and remained as polite as possible.

"I'm here to work on a physics project with Adrien," Alya replied. There was a pause, and the woman spoke again, "Very well."

With a buzz, the gate swung open, and Alya entered the courtyard of the massive house. When she reached the door, she debated on whether she should knock or try to open it.

She was saved from any further deliberation when Adrien appeared in the doorway, a bright smile on his face.

"Good morning, Alya!" he greeted warmly.

"Morning! Ready to get to work?" she replied, even though she wasn't remotely ready to get to work. His good mood seemed to be contagious.

"Yeah! But first, are you hungry?" he asked as he led her in and up the sweeping staircase. Alya shrugged, "I had a granola bar before I left."

He chuckled, "I'll take that as a yes." He poked his head into a room on the right.

"Gustav, could you prepare a plate to be brought to my room?" Adrien called, into what Alya presumed to be the kitchen.

"Sure thing, Adrien!" The cook responded warmly. Adrien began leading the girl toward his room once again.

As they passed through the door, he turned to Alya with a mischievous grin, "Gustav is awesome. He generally gets me whatever I want, even if it's on my restricted foods list. My dad doesn't have to know."

Alya snickered, "I didn't know you were such a rebel."

Adrien's grin widened to a full-on smirk, "It's the small things."

The reporter whistled in amazement as her eyes roved around his room, "This place is huge."

Adrien's lips quirked up in a wry smile, "And empty."

Alya felt as if she'd been jolted with electricity, and not in a nice way. She reached out and laid a hand on his shoulder, "Hey, I'm just a phone call away."

He schooled his countenance into the normal friendly expression he wore during class, "Sorry about that! You're here to work on our project, not listen to me complain."

Alya wasn't fooled, but decided to play along for his sake. If he didn't want to talk about it, she wasn't going to make him. She plopped down on his couch and began pulling out her binder to find the assignment sheet.

She happened to glance up and caught sight of Adrien's computer monitors.

All three screens were set on different feeds of the Ladyblog. The middle screen was set to her most recent article, the one on the left was the video tab, and the screen on the right stayed on the homepage.

Alya grinned, turning her gaze to Adrien, who was also sifting through his bag.

"So…you like the Ladyblog, huh?"

He paused and looked at her uncomprehendingly, "Hm?"

The girl laughed, "The Ladyblog. Looks like you're really interested in staying up-to-date."

He stiffened, and his eyes darted over to his computer. A look of horror crossed his features as he zoomed over and turned the monitors off.

"Gotta stay on top of the akuma attacks, right?" he said a bit too quickly. Alya narrowed her eyes, a calculating expression on her face.

"Yeah, it's not like you're keeping tabs on a certain superhero, right?" she replied in a singsong voice.

The teen model flushed a bit, "Of course not! Why would you say that?"

Alya's grin grew, "Someone is a major Ladybug fan."

Adrien nervously rubbed the back of his neck, "Isn't everyone? She's pretty awesome."

The blogger gave him a knowing look, "Mhm. She sure is."

"So…Physics?" Adrien offered, a hopeful gleam in his eye.

Alya decided to relent, for a while.

It was close to eleven when they finally decided to call it quits. Alya slouched back onto the couch; feeling like her brain had been fried.

"You okay?" Adrien asked, perpetually cheerful as always.

The girl gave him a quick thumbs-up. Adrien glanced at the clock, and then back at his classmate.

"Um, do you have any plans for today? My shoot isn't until three, so maybe we could hang out?" he asked, looking guardedly hopeful for company.

Alya shot upright as she realized that an opportunity had just presented itself.

"I was actually planning to ask Marinette if she wanted to go out to lunch. You should come with us!" she offered, trying to keep her smile neutral.

"Oh! I wouldn't want to impose," he murmured, having misinterpreted her words to be a refusal.

"No way! I haven't even asked her yet, so technically,  _she'd_  be tagging along with  _us_ ," Alya explained.

Adrien immediately bounced back, "Lunch sounds awesome." Alya happily dialed her best friend's cell.

"Hey, Marinette! We're going to get lunch, wanna come?" she stated ambiguously.

"Sure!" Marinette replied happily, seeming thrilled at the idea of getting out of the house.

There was a pause, and she spoke again. "Wait,  _we_? Who else is coming?"

Alya's grin was alarmingly wide, "I was thinking maybe that café downtown. What do  _you_  think, Adrien?"

He watched her curiously, but responded promptly enough.

"Sounds good! I've never been there. What does Marinette want?" he asked, an excited smile on his face.

The brunette held back laughter. "Yeah, what  _do_  you want, Marinette?"

"Anything," she squeaked.

"She said anything's good. So I guess we'll see you there, Mari!" Alya stated, hanging up the phone and placing it in her pocket with a satisfied flourish.

Alya walked alongside Adrien as they made their way downtown. It was a bright and sunny day, and the teenage boy was so eager that he had a noticeable bounce in his step.

"Marinette doesn't mind if I come along?" he double-checked.

Alya snorted at the idea of Marinette ever minding Adrien's presence.

"No way! If anything, she's probably thrilled that you're coming," Alya explained, leaving just enough out.

His grin grew impossibly wider, "Really? I always got the impression that I make her uncomfortable."

Alya shrugged, "Mari can be kinda shy sometimes, but trust me, she likes having you around."

Adrien seemed to ponder that for a while, and the blogger nearly had a heart attack as she considered the possibility that she'd said too much.

"Do you think she'd be more comfortable if I wasn't such a stick-in-the-mud all the time?" he asked, looking entirely too cheerful to be putting himself down.

Alya immediately switched into cheerleader mode, "You're not-"

"I can be pretty boring a lot of the time. It's a fact of life," he interrupted, an oddly lighthearted smile in place. Alya tilted her head as she tried to understand the boy.

"Maybe I should cut loose more often," he explained.

Alya smiled and gave him a friendly shove, "I think you should just be yourself."

Adrien laughed, "Careful, I can be pretty annoying."

The blogger snorted, "Somehow, I can't see you being annoying. You're too nice."

"I have a secret love of horrible puns," he replied with a wicked grin.

Alya laughed, "No way!"

"Way," he assured her, mischievous smirk still in place.

It was an expression Alya never thought she'd see on Adrien, and she was almost certain that Marinette wouldn't have been able to handle it.

"As long as you're not worse than Chat Noir, I don't think you'd be annoying," Alya assured him, offering a friendly smile.

Adrien snorted, a rather undignified sound. "What if I'm just as bad as Chat Noir?" he challenged.

The blogger chuckled, "You say that like it's possible."

Adrien's grin broadened, "It'd be a  _cat_ astrophe."

Alya stared back at him, a dramatized expression of shock on her face. "Adrien Agreste, did you just pun?"

"Guilty as charged," he replied, looking quite satisfied with himself.

The girl began to chuckle, and he joined in with a heartfelt laugh. Alya had always wondered what it was that drew Marinette to Adrien.

Sure, he was good-looking, but as far as Marinette was concerned, his outer beauty was just the icing on the cake.

Seeing him laugh and smile filled her with a warm, maternal feeling, and she suddenly understood.

At the core of his very being, he was  _good_. There was something vulnerable, yet powerful, about the kindness that danced behind his eyes.

A gentle soul like Adrien's needed to be nurtured, and Marinette was nothing if not a nurturer.

They arrived at the café, and Adrien held the door so that Alya could enter first, always the gentleman. Her eyes immediately locked onto Marinette, who was seated on a comfy looking loveseat.

Her hair was pulled into a messy bun, which Alya knew only happened when Marinette hadn't had time to wash her hair and needed to look presentable, and she wore an artfully baggy pink tee shirt.

She hadn't noticed when they walked in, and looked to be totally absorbed in adding sugar to her coffee.

Alya glanced at Adrien and realized that he was watching Marinette with a fond look in his eye. It wasn't much, but it was something, she supposed.

Alya led the way over to the table, pondering the fact that her newfound respect for Adrien made her feel bad for pushing Marinette toward Chat Noir.

Perhaps she could support both boys, and her best friend would pick the one she liked more. Adrien had a head start in that race, but he didn't seem nearly as interested in winning Marinette over as Chat was.

"Hey girl," Alya greeted, watching the dark haired girl jump at the sudden noise. "Oh, hey Alya! A-And Adrien," she tacked on with a bashful smile.

The blond boy didn't seem to mind her stutter, and waved at her cheerfully. Alya strategically took a seat across from Marinette, purposefully staying perched on the end of the booth so that Adrien would be forced to sit next to the pig-tailed girl.

He did exactly as Alya expected, and took a seat next to a very pink Marinette. "I'm actually really excited to try the food here. Nino said it was awesome," the green-eyed boy said; joy radiating from him in waves.

"It is! They have wonderful paninis," Marinette replied as easily as she could.

Alya wondered if it were possible for human beings to spontaneously combust.

"So Adrien and I were talking about puns on the way here. Apparently, he's a fan," Alya added, shooting an encouraging smile in the boy's direction.

There was suddenly a soft dusting of pink on his cheeks as his gaze dropped to the table, "I've literally thought of like ten puns since we came in the door."

Alya snickered as Marinette's eyes widened.

"Go on," Alya prompted.

"Since this is a café, beverage-related puns would be tea-riffic, right?" he began, looking a bit sheepish as he met Alya's gaze.

"Boy, go on and expresso yourself!" the blogger encouraged with an impish grin.

"Where have you bean all my life?" he retorted, mischief dancing behind his green eyes as his lips quirked up in a roguish grin.

Marinette looked torn between rolling her eyes and having a meltdown over the look on Adrien's face.

"That one is  _grounds_  for punishment," Alya replied.

" _Pun_ -ishment?" Adrien emphasized, his expression settling into a self-assured smirk.

"I didn't do that on purpose," the blogger said a bit defensively.

"Eh, it's okay. I can tell you have a  _latte_  on your mind," he drawled with expert ease.

Marinette groaned and dropped her head onto the table with an audible thump.'

"Stop. I can't take any more," she whined, her voice muffled by the table.

Adrien chuckled and leaned down to Marinette's level, "Sorry Marinette. The last thing I want is to  _mocha_  you uncomfortable."

She tilted her head sideways to look up at him and blushed when she realized how close he had gotten.

"Only you could make coffee puns hot," Marinette mumbled.

The blond snickered, looking pretty impressed. "That one was kinda a stretch, but it's awesome that you gave it a  _shot_."

Marinette realized her mistake, and looked absolutely mortified. Obviously, she hadn't meant to say that aloud. Alya's grin grew wider as she watched her best friend devolve into a stuttering mess.

Sometimes Marinette made her job too easy.

She stopped the recording on her phone and stashed it in her pocket for safekeeping, sure that it would make for excellent teasing material tomorrow.

She noticed that Marinette seemed to be drowning in half-formed sentences, and decided to throw her a line.

"I think our waitress is coming back. Have you two decided what you want?"

Adrien and Marinette immediately snapped to attention and began combing through the menus. Marinette met her gaze with a grateful smile, and Alya grinned back at her.

What were friends for?


	6. Proximity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Alya turned off the recording on her phone and turned her attention to the scene, only to stiffen with anger."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My original note at the beginning of this chapter was "I regret nothing."
> 
> After looking at it again, I have to say: I have some regrets.

Ladybug's Miraculous Cure had already swept over the city, righting all of the wrongs done by the akumatized super villain. The spotted superheroine crouched down to calm the akuma victim; while Chat Noir helped the target of the attack down from the roof she'd been stranded on.

Clinging to the cat-themed superhero in an overly dramatic display of gratitude, was Lila.

"Thank you for saving me, Chat Noir! You're so brave," she enthused, slyly trailing her fingers across his bicep.

He chuckled nervously and tried to step away, "All in a day's work."

She followed closely, draping her arms across his shoulders, "How could I ever repay you?"

"Really, there's no need," He gulped and stiffened as she lightly ran her free hand down his chest.

Alya tensed with anger, and was fully prepared to march over there and yank Lila away from the poor boy.

It turned out she didn't have to.

It was at that moment Ladybug happened to look up, and her blue eyes widened as she took in the way Chat's back was rigid with discomfort.

The blogger looked on in awe as Marinette skillfully interrupted whatever Lila was up to by telling Chat Noir that they needed to meet before their transformations wore off.

He gratefully extricated himself from Lila's arms, giving a quick salute before vaulting onto the roofs and disappearing alongside Ladybug.

Alya made her way over to the bakery, knowing that Marinette would arrive soon. She made herself comfortable on the chaise, and set to work editing the newest video to be uploaded to the Ladyblog.

The roof hatch opened, and Ladybug dropped into the room with practiced grace, detransforming as soon as her feet hit the floor.

Marinette sighed as she handed Tikki a cookie and collapsed next to her best friend.

"Rough fight?" Alya asked, smiling knowingly.

"I mean, yeah it was tough, but…" Marinette replied, trailing off at the end.

"That's not what you're thinking about," Alya finished.

"Yeah. I'm worried about Chat," she admitted, pulling her pigtails out and dropping her head onto a pillow.

"Why? Because of Lila?" the blogger asked, putting her phone down and giving Marinette her full attention.

"It's just…he's always such a flirt! He looked so uncomfortable and trapped, though. It wasn't like him," the dark haired girl explained, an expression of concern on her face.

Alya shrugged, "I told you before. I haven't ever heard of him flirting with someone other than you. Cat-boy can dish it out, but I don't think he's very good at taking it."

Marinette scoffed, "I doubt that. Maybe it was just Lila that made him uncomfortable."

The blogger smirked, "Wanna bet?"

Marinette laughed, "I don't think that'd be a fair wager, Alya. I'd win in a heartbeat."

Alya's grin grew, "Then you won't mind putting money on it. Twenty euros says Chat Noir freezes up if you flirt back."

"Thirty says he becomes even more insufferable," Marinette challenged, a competitive gleam in her eye.

Alya extended her hand, "You're on."

Marinette shook on it, feeling that she was going to be twenty euros richer by the time the day was over.

Alya knew better.

She found herself situated in a lawn chair on a roof across from the one Ladybug and Chat Noir usually met on for their Wednesday meetings, armed with a pair of binoculars and her headset.

The sun was in the midst of disappearing below the skyline when Chat Noir arrived on the scene, taking seat next to Ladybug.

"You look as beautiful as always, My Lady," Chat Noir murmured, placing a kiss on the back of her hand.

She tensed and prepared to pull away before she remembered her bet with Alya.

"Seriously, Chat?" she prodded, making sure her sarcasm was soft and teasing.

"Definitely. I'm no photographer, but I can picture you and me together," he stated with a playful wink.

Instead of rolling her eyes at him, she scooted closer so that her nose was inches from his.

"Is that really the best you can do?" she asked, watching his eyes widen with surprise.

A slow smile turned the edges of her lips up, and his breath hitched in response.

"I-I… You…M-Me? Uh, lines up-pick? Gah! P-Pick-up lines?" he babbled, at least ten times worse than Marinette was in front of Adrien.

She chuckled at the irony of the situation, "Yes, Kitty. Pick-up lines. Was that your best one?"

He stared at her uncomprehendingly, his slitted green eyes wide and his face flushed.

"N-No?" he stammered, still in shock from her sudden proximity.

Alya heard it all through the intercom, and almost felt sorry for what she'd done to the cat-boy. Almost.

It was all she could do not to laugh at his misfortune.

Marinette finally realized that Alya had won the bet, and leaned back out of his personal space, gazing out at the city as he collected his wits.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, and Ladybug took great care to avoid looking at Chat, in hopes that he would find his words sooner that way. The sky was painted with a blaze of pinks and oranges as the sun disappeared from view and the moon emerged to signify the beginning of nighttime.

"I'm sorry, Ladybug," he murmured quietly.

She turned her attention to the boy beside her, who looked more reserved than she'd ever seen him.

"For what?" she asked, curiosity getting the best of her.

He smiled at her shyly, an expression she hadn't seen on his normally smug face before.

"For making things weird," he explained with a stiff shrug.

"You don't make things weird, Kitty. You're fine just as you are," she assured him with a bright smile.

"Even with the cheesy pick-up lines?" he qualified, a cautious smirk on his face.

"Even with the cheesy pick-up lines," she promised, rolling her eyes playfully.

He laughed and bumped her shoulder with his, "You're the best, Bugaboo."

She returned the gesture with a lighthearted laugh, "I know."

He didn't reply, but stared back at her intently, a radiant smile stretched across his face. Though he was a huge flirt, Marinette realized that his feelings must be genuine. She wondered how she managed to miss the childlike honesty in his gaze, or the way he lit up when she looked at him.

"You owe me thirty euros," Alya reminded her over the intercom.


	7. Expression

Alya often prided herself on her investigative skills,  _and_  her ability to read her best friend like a book. She sat off to the side with Nino, who was bobbing his head to the beat of whatever song was blasting through his headphones.

Alya absentmindedly adjusted her glasses and scribbled down a few notes on the piece of literature they were supposed to be analyzing.

Marinette's laughter rang out over the muddled din of conversation, and she turned her attention to the table at the opposite side of the room, where Marinette and Adrien sat.

The pig-tailed girl was covering her mouth as she tried to keep a straight face, and the blond boy looked thrilled to pieces.

Alya narrowed her eyes as she tried to decipher the meaning behind the exchange. Adrien looked rather proud of himself, so it stood to reason that he'd told a joke and was glad to have someone actually laugh at it. Marinette was somehow able to power through her nerves to brush off his attempts at humor.

It didn't make any sense. Unless Alya's efforts to get Ladybug to notice Chat Noir were finally putting a dent in Marinette's resolve.

Alya cackled giddily, and Nino gave her a worried look.

Nothing would stand in the way of Alya Césaire's matchmaking. Now that Marinette was showing signs of weakness, all she needed was a few well-placed shoves in the right direction. Who better to provide the necessary pushes than her best friend?

"Um, Alya? Are you feeling okay?" Nino asked, removing his headphones and leaning forward with a wide-eyed gaze.

She grinned and spoke with obvious excitement, "Everything's fantastic!"

"Are you sure? Cause you've got a scary look on your face," Nino replied, shrinking back under her gaze.

She promptly punched him in the shoulder and resumed working on their notes, in case Ms. Bustier decided to ask them for their opinions during the large group discussion.

After class let out, Alya accompanied Marinette home for lunch. It was a short walk from the school, but it was just enough time to take in the scenery and enjoy the warmth of the sun on their skin.

They entered the bakery and trudged up the stairs to the family kitchen, grabbing their already prepared lunches from Mrs. Dupain-Cheng before heading up to Marinette's room.

As soon as the hatch closed, Tikki zipped out of Marinette's purse and snatched a cookie from the plate. The kwami munched on it with gusto; glad to be out of the bag for a while.

Alya let her friend eat for a while, but eventually it became too much to hold in the teasing.

"So, it looked like you were more comfortable with Adrien today," she stated in a sing-song voice.

"Yeah, Marinette! You only stuttered twice. It was a new record!" Tikki enthused, twirling with a flourish.

Marinette beamed happily, "Yeah! It was so much easier to talk to him today than it usually is. I think I finally made some progress!"

Alya nodded enthusiastically, "Totally, girl! Though, it's too bad it came at the cost of your feelings toward Chat Noir."

Marinette froze, "What? I don't have feelings for Chat Noir!"

The blogger shrugged, "Okay, if you say so."

"I don't! We've just gotten closer in the past few weeks, that's all," Marinette continued, seeming more like she was convincing herself than Alya.

"Alright. After all, who could know your feelings better than you, right?" Alya replied, a carefully neutral expression on her face as she took a bite out of a cookie.

"Exactly! It's not like I can't love him without  _loving_  him. He's like a best friend. A guy friend. Who likes me as more than friends," Marinette rambled, pacing the floor in an agitated manner.

Tikki shared a look with Alya, and it was right then that she knew the kwami was hiding something.

"Just because he likes me like that, doesn't mean I have to like  _him_  like that," the girl continued, still pacing.

"Girl, you're one-hundred percent right. You don't owe him anything," Alya agreed, her feminist fire having been ignited by her best friend's statement.

"Right! I don't like him like that. Even if I think he's kinda cute, you can think someone's attractive without liking them. That's normal. He's a good-looking guy, and I'm a teenage girl…so I naturally notice things like that. It doesn't have to mean I like him," Marinette reasoned.

Alya needed to stop her before she fried her brain trying to convince herself of her lack of interest in Chat Noir.

"Hey, Tikki? You wanted another cookie, right?" Alya interrupted.

Tikki gave her a knowing look, "Yes, actually. Would you mind getting one for me, Marinette?"

The girl immediately snapped out of her stupor and smiled, "Of course, Tikki!"

She rushed down the stairs toward the kitchen, leaving Alya and Tikki alone in the predominately pink bedroom.

There was a bout of silence before Alya turned to Tikki, pointing an accusing finger at the kwami.

"You know something, don't you?" Alya demanded, hands on her hips.

Tikki smiled sweetly, "Whatever do you mean, Alya?"

The future reporter laughed, "You know something about Chat Noir. I'd put money on it."

Tikki smiled, "I have some theories. The only thing you need to know is that Chat Noir and Ladybug are fabled to be tied together by the hands of fate. Light and dark, push and pull…"

"Yin and Yang," Alya finished, a look of pure wonder on her face.

Tikki nodded, "Everything is about balance. Even if Marinette never returns his affections, she will always need him around to bring balance to her life. I think, deep down, she knows that."

The hatch opened, and Marinette entered the room with a plate of steaming cookies. "Mama pulled them straight out of the oven," she exclaimed with pride.

Alya squealed with delight, "Yes! Best day ever!"

Marinette giggled, "What else happened to make it the best day ever?"

Alya waggled her eyebrows at Tikki, who tittered with amusement.

"What?" Marinette prodded.

"Nothing you need to worry about," Alya assured her with a furtive wink.

Marinette narrowed her eyes as she glared at her best friend, "You've become almost as annoying as Chat Noir."

Alya shrugged, a steely glint in her eye, "I won't complain, as long as you think I'm as  _cute_  as Chat Noir too."

Marinette's face became a shade of red that resembled the coloration of a tomato, though Alya couldn't tell if it was a product of embarrassment or rage.

" _Alya_!"

She decided that it was definitely rage.


	8. Flowerpots

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya gives the best pep talks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Much more serious than the previous one shots in this series.

If anyone had asked Alya Césaire what she thought she'd be doing early on a Sunday morning, she'd have said something along the lines of sleeping in.

Giving a superhero a pep talk was definitely not within the bounds of what she thought she'd be doing, but then again, her life had gotten much weirder since she figured out that her best friend was Ladybug.

As she sat on a bench in the park, wrapped in a warm sweater and holding a mug of coffee, she wondered why she was up before the sun. A quick glance to her left reminded her why.

"Sorry again for waking you up. I really didn't mean to break your flowerpots," the nervous voice beside her murmured.

Of course the superhero she was comforting was none other than Chat Noir, instead of her super best friend, which made the situation even more ironic.

"Don't sweat it. Those flowers were dead anyway," Alya replied with a dismissive wave of her hand.

He was hunched over his own steaming mug of coffee, looking rather emotionally drained. His normally bright eyes were dull, and his voice lacked its usual confident lilt.

When she found him on her fire escape with a sheepish grin on his face, she could tell something was off. Why else would he be out at four in the morning on a Sunday?

So she did what any decent person would do in such a situation; she invited him in and fixed them both a cup of coffee.

As she realized that they would need to have a serious conversation in order to help him, she saw the need to move elsewhere. Alya would rather not have to deal with the potential outcome of her siblings pestering Chat Noir, so she suggested that they go for a walk.

They ended up on a bench at the park, and had been sitting in relative silence for a while.

"So, are you gonna tell me what's got you down, or are we just going to sit here until the sun comes up?" Alya asked bluntly.

Chat Noir straightened with surprise, and his gaze locked with hers. "Oh. You actually want to know?"

Her eyebrows knit together as she considered that he might have never had someone want to know how he was feeling.

"Well, yeah. I can't help if I don't know what's up," she explained.

The blond boy fidgeted a bit, "It's kinda depressing. Are you sure you want to know?"

Alya nodded; keeping eye contact with him so he would know she was serious.

He took a deep breath and stared off into the distance, the dull look in his eyes shifting as he pressed his lips together.

"Today is my mother's birthday," he whispered.

Alya didn't need to ask for more information; the unshed tears that welled in his eyes were enough explanation. She placed her hands on his shoulders, turning him so that he was face to face with her.

"It's okay to not be okay," Alya stated with fervor.

His lip quivered as a single tear escaped, and she pulled him into a fierce hug, rubbing circles into his back as the stray water droplets soaked into her shirt.

He didn't make a sound aside from the occasional sniffle, and Alya hoped he would find some comfort in her words.

A few minutes passed, and he pulled away and wiped at his eyes with the back of his glove, offering her a watery smile.

"Thanks, Alya," the teen superhero said. His former confidence was beginning to seep into his voice once again, and she smiled.

They sat in companionable silence for a while, listening to the hum of early morning traffic. They sipped their coffee, shoulders brushing every so often as they shifted to get comfortable.

Chat Noir turned to her with a grin, and all traces of sadness seemed to have disappeared.

"You're an amazing friend. No wonder Marinette loves you so much," he enthused.

Alya struck a heroic pose, "I am pretty amazing, huh?"

"No doubt about it," Chat Noir agreed with an amused glint in his eye.

"Feel free to visit the Amazing Alya whenever you need a friendly ear, okay?" she replied with a teasing sparkle in her eye.

He responded with a toothy grin and an enthusiastic nod, placing his empty mug down beside hers. He stood and waved goodbye before vaulting away onto the rooftops.

The sun was just peeking over the horizon, and Alya took a final swig of her lukewarm coffee.

With the next day came the difficulty of getting up for school on a Monday morning. Alya knew that everyone hated Mondays, but she reserved the right to feel like her hatred was the only hatred that mattered.

That being said, she was totally unprepared for the radiant smile that greeted her as she slouched through the door of her classroom.

"Good morning, Alya," Adrien greeted, looking way too chipper for someone who was in school on Monday.

She grunted what she hoped was a greeting and shuffled past him to get to her table.

The blogger flopped down into her seat, and was fully prepared to zone out until Marinette got there, when she noticed that a cup of coffee sat on her desk.

Alya eyed it warily, before looking around in question.

"The guy at the coffee shop got my order wrong, so I got that one for free," Adrien explained with a cheerful smile.

"Oh. Thank you," Alya replied.

She lifted the cup to her lips and was surprised to find that it tasted exactly the way she liked her coffee. Alya lifted her eyes to Adrien, who looked a bit shyer than usual.

"It's okay if you don't like it," he assured her, a bit of doubt creeping into his gaze.

Something about that expression jogged her memory, and suddenly his green eyes were jarringly familiar.

Alya chuckled, "The coffee's great. If I didn't know any better, I'd say the barista knew exactly how much sugar and creamer I like in mine. That's impossible, though, since it was a mistake."

"Yeah," he murmured, a bit of a humorous gleam in his eyes.

Alya squinted at him, fixing the boy with a scrutinizing glare.

Adrien tilted his head questioningly, and it only cemented her suspicions.

A dangerous smirk played across her face as she stared him down, her hatred of Monday mornings long forgotten.

"You owe me some new flowerpots, Agreste."

 


	9. Giddy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya seems a little...off. Marinette notices.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a poll (of sorts) at the bottom! I'd appreciate feedback!

Marinette couldn't quite say that Monday was the weirdest day of her life. Not when she had been kidnapped by a flock of pigeons before, at least. This particular Monday definitely deserved a spot in the top ten, though.

First, she was late to school for a reason that definitely had nothing to do with the halfway-completed design that was draped over her dress form at home. Then, her best friend hadn't even properly greeted her when she entered the classroom.

Instead, Alya shrieked when she saw Marinette.

The entire class flinched, and Ms. Bustier dropped her clipboard. After the initial shock died down, Marinette attempted to ask Alya what was going on.

The blogger grinned like the Cheshire cat and giggled maniacally.

Marinette knew that Alya could be a little high strung sometimes, and figured that her odd behavior was caused by the coffee that sat innocently on the corner of the table.

It did not end there, however.

Adrien turned around in his seat to give Marinette a welcoming smile.

"Good Morning, Marinette," he greeted, blinding her with his gorgeous green eyes.

"Morning good! I mean, good morning!" Marinette fumbled, flushing with embarrassment at her slip.

Alya made her presence known with a loud snort, eyes darting between them gleefully. Adrien turned a pointed glare on her.

"Geez, Alya," the blond complained, looking rather put out by her behavior.

The pig-tailed girl blinked in confusion. Alya never laughed at her nervous slip-ups around the boy of her dreams, and perfect Adrien never acted so melodramatic.

She looked to Nino for help, but he only shrugged, looking just as bewildered as she was.

Alya's strange behavior continued as the day went on, and she didn't bother to hide her mirth when Rose referenced Paris's resident superheroes in their class discussion on why romance novels sell so well.

There was nothing about the statement that should have been funny, except for the fact that everyone was convinced that Ladybug and Chat Noir were a thing, but Alya cracked up like it was the joke of the century.

By the time lunch break rolled around, Marinette was deeply concerned for her friend. Before she was able to do anything about it though, Adrien appeared in front of their table wearing a cheerful smile.

"Hey Marinette, mind if I borrow Alya real quick?" he asked pleasantly.

"Anything for you." Marinette blanched and waved her hands around frantically, "I-I mean, sure! No problem."

"Thanks!" he replied, before grabbing a cackling Alya by the elbow and leading her out the door.

Marinette blinked as she tried to comprehend what had just happened. By all accounts, it made no sense.

"Tikki, that was weird, right?" she murmured, checking to make sure  _she_  wasn't the one who had gone insane.

"Yes, Marinette. It was very strange," the kwami replied, poking her head out of Marinette's bag to give her chosen a concerned look.

Not even ten minutes later, Alya returned. There was a distinct lack of laughter that made Marinette a bit suspicious.

The two girls walked toward the bakery, and Alya casually chatted about the Ladyblog as if she hadn't been acting like a maniac all morning. They grabbed their lunches and headed upstairs to take their customary seats in the middle of the floor.

Ever since Alya had learned Ladybug's secret identity, the girls had been all but inseparable. Even Tikki had fallen into their new daily routine, and nibbled on a cookie while she hovered at eye-level.

"Alya, is everything okay?" Marinette asked, hoping to shift into a conversation about her best friend's odd behavior that morning.

Alya beamed like she'd just become a millionaire.

"Yes! Everything's fantastic," she replied, kicking her feet in excitement.

Marinette furrowed her brow, "Did something good happen?"

Alya nodded so enthusiastically that Marinette wondered if her head would fall off. The pig-tailed girl smiled at her friend's excitement.

"What is it?" she asked, trying to keep her own anticipation at bay.

Alya immediately deflated, her lips drawing down into a pout, "I can't tell you."

"What?" Marinette asked; clearly she hadn't heard her correctly.

"I can't tell you, girl. I'm sworn to secrecy," the blogger explained, miming a lock and key over her mouth while looking quite contrite.

The teen superhero frowned, "A secret? From me?"

Alya shrugged helplessly, "It's not my secret to tell. You know how it is."

"Yeah, I guess so," Marinette mumbled with a halfhearted nod of her head.

The brunette gave her a playful shove, "Everything's gonna work out just fine, trust me."

Marinette couldn't fathom exactly what Alya could be talking about if it was related to her secret, but decided that she would just have to trust her friend. Alya hadn't given her any reason not to, even if she  _was_  pretty annoying about Chat Noir sometimes.

She looked up and realized that Alya was rummaging through her book bag.

"What are you looking for?" Marinette asked, watching her with thinly veiled curiosity.

Alya grinned, mischief flashing in her eyes, "Oh, just something I got you as a present."

Marinette knew that look, and also knew that she wasn't going to like whatever present Alya was going to pull from her bag. Sure enough, she pulled out a piece of paper and opened it up.

She proudly held up her gift like a trophy, and chuckled while Marinette groaned.

"Alya, what the heck is that?" Marinette demanded, crossing her arms over her chest in defiance.

The blogger gave her a well-practiced innocent look, "Something to add a little variety to your decór."

Marinette simmered in silence while her friend taped the poster to her wall alongside her lovely magazine cutouts of Adrien.

"Alya, how am I supposed to get anything done with Chat Noir staring back at me all the time," Marinette complained, earning an amused giggle from Tikki.

The brunette snorted, "Same way you get things done with Adrien staring back at you all the time."

Marinette opened her mouth to argue, but her face flushed with embarrassment instead. She silently cursed her inability to play it cool while Alya let loose a distinctly evil-sounding laugh.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to let everyone know that this is part of a (very long) series, so it doesn't actually end at Chapter 10. I originally posted it as a one shot collection on FFnet, and wasn't sure about how to format it here.
> 
> So I'm asking for opinions now!
> 
> Plot points are broken into sets of 10 one shots. So that means chapters 10, 20, 30, and 40 are all big parts of an overarching story.
> 
> Should I:
> 
> Post sets of 10 in a series
> 
> or
> 
> Post all 50 one shots here as a multi chapter story


	10. Distance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Distance (Or Lack Thereof)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to all of you for the advice! I've decided to keep Perception as a series, but Part 1 will be twenty chapters long instead of ten.
> 
> The reason is that Chapter 20 feels like a better stopping place, since the plot point of Chapter 10 is pretty minor in the grand scheme of things.

"Let me get this straight, you love Ladybug."

"Yes?"

"You love Ladybug."

"Yes."

"You're  _in love_  with Ladybug?"

"I honestly thought that was obvious, Alya."

"And you don't know who she is," the reporter deadpanned, regarding Chat Noir with a skeptical look.

The boy slumped forward to rest his chin on his drawn-up knee with a deep weariness in his catlike eyes. The wind ruffled his blond hair and cut through the knit of Alya's sweater, causing her to shiver a bit before she shrugged on a jacket she'd borrowed from Nino.

She had no intention of ever returning it, so perhaps 'borrowed' was a poor choice of words.

Chat Noir's other foot dangled off the edge of the wide beam on which they sat, as if he had no regard for how high in the air they were. Alya maintained a safe distance from the edge, though she showed no traces of nervousness.

"She doesn't want me to know who she is. I have to respect that," he murmured, as if it was a line he'd rehearsed in the mirror countless times.

Alya tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, "What's stopping you from telling her who  _you_  are, then?"

He laughed, eyes sparkling with mirth, "She is."

The blogger rolled her eyes, huffing with annoyance. "That's stupid."

"She's so  _stubborn_ ," he breathed, as if he were describing the beauty of a sunrise.

Alya looked unimpressed. "You say that like it's a good thing."

"I like a girl who knows what she wants," he quipped, giving her a signature Chat Noir smirk.

She snorted, "You're hopeless."

"A hopeless  _romantic_ ," he corrected, grin growing even wider.

A sudden zipping noise was the only warning they received before Ladybug alighted on the platform, seeming rather surprised to see them.

Chat's eyes widened, "Ladybug! What are you doing up so early in the morning?"

Her cobalt eyes darted between them quickly, and Alya offered her a sheepish smile.

"I should be asking you the same thing, Kitty," she replied, only a little bit uncertainly.

"Ladyblog exclusive," he replied, shooting Alya a cheeky grin.

The owner of the Ladyblog immediately played along.

"Chat Noir is wildly popular right now. I figured his fans would appreciate seeing more from him, and he thought it would be nice to see more of his fanbase. So we wanted to plan a live video chat," Alya explained with expert ease.

The spotted superheroine still looked puzzled, but accepted the explanation quickly enough. She took a seat on the other side of Chat Noir, ruffling his hair along the way.

"Don't you see enough of your fangirls already, Chat?" she asked with a teasing smile.

"Of course not. You know I only have eyes for you, Bugaboo," he replied in a sultry tone, invading her personal space so that their noses were nearly touching.

Ladybug chuckled at his antics, "Do you, now?"

"Mhm," he hummed, mildly surprised that she hadn't grabbed his face and pushed him away yet.

She rolled her eyes and laughed, a soft tinkling sound, "You crazy cat."

"Crazy for  _you_ ," he murmured with a playful smirk.

The air was charged with nearly palpable energy as they gazed into each other's eyes. It was as if they were having some sort of unspoken contest to see who would break it first. Whatever 'it' was.

Her nose somehow brushed against his, and Chat Noir's brain short-circuited.

An audible camera sound shattered the moment.

Both superheroes blinked owlishly, blinded by the bright flash of light. Alya Césaire grinned back at them, brandishing her phone like a trophy.

Ladybug glared, muscles coiling in preparation to snatch the device away from the girl.

"It's already been sent to my drive. You can't get rid of it," she taunted, a triumphant grin in place.

The superheroine huffed and stood up, crossing her arms like an angry toddler.

"Fine. I'm taking you home," Ladybug stated.

"It's okay, My Lady. I was planning to take her back myself," Chat Noir interjected, standing up as well.

"No, I'll take her home," Ladybug repeated; her tone left no room for argument.

He turned to Alya with a helpless shrug, and she rolled her eyes.

"Pushover," she muttered.

"She's  _stubborn_ ," he replied, a love-struck grin on his face.

Ladybug cast her yo-yo out and prepared to jump, offering a hand to Alya. The brunette girl sighed and stood up, walking past Chat Noir to get to Ladybug.

He caught her by the arm and gave her a conspiratorial grin, "Send me that picture?"

She smiled back and bumped his fist,

"Already did."


	11. Oblivion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Short, but wholesome.

Alya's brow was furrowed in concentration as she fought to keep her hand steady. One slip of her finger would result in a mess that she desperately hoped she wouldn't have to clean up.

Marinette's giggle disrupted her concentration, and she shot a glare at the best friend. "Marinette, you're going to ruin everything!" she scolded, returning her gaze to her work with laser-like precision.

"Alya, it's just fingernail polish. I don't mind if it's a little bit messy," Marinette assured her with an amused lilt to her voice.

"It's the principle of the matter!" Alya replied matter-of-factly.

The pig-tailed girl sighed and shook her head, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "So, how are things going with Nino?" she asked.

Alya paused in the midst of painting her friend's nails. "He's such a dork."

Marinette laughed, "You really like him, don't you?"

The owner of the Ladyblog huffed, "I mean, I guess so. He can be super dense sometimes, though. Can't take a hint at all. I mean, how obvious do I have to be?"

"You're not really that obvious, Alya" Marinette qualified, in the interest of fairness.

"Gee, Nino. I'd really like to see that new Rom-com that's playing at the cinema, whomever shall I go with?" Alya dramatized, bringing her voice to a higher pitch than usual.

Marinette snorted, "Okay, so he  _is_  a little oblivious sometimes."

Alya looked like she wanted to throttle her friend. "Says the queen of oblivion herself," the blogger deadpanned.

Marinette shot her a pained look and wiggled her halfway painted fingers, "Are you going to finish painting them, or not?"

The brunette huffed theatrically and resumed the painstaking task of making her best friend's nails look glamorous.

"When I'm finished, even Adrien will envy your perfectly painted nails," Alya announced.

Marinette giggled, "I don't think Adrien would ever care about nails."

"When he sees yours, he will," Alya argued, a comical expression on her face.

"Why Marinette, what lovely nails you have! Is that periwinkle polish?" Marinette exclaimed in a deep voice she reserved for only the silliest of conversations.

"No, it's lavender!" Alya replied with a staged flick of her wrist.

"I've fallen instantly in love with you because of your beautiful lavender fingernails," Marinette responded flipping her hair melodramatically.

Both girls devolved into a fit of hysterical laughter over the hilarity of the pretend situation. They laughed until their sides hurt and they were both exhausted.

The rest of their sleepover was spent talking and laughing into the wee hours of the morning, until they finally fell asleep side-by-side on Marinette's bed.

The following Monday, they both entered into school with bright smiles and painted nails. Alya and Marinette took their seats and chatted while they waited for class to begin. Adrien and Nino entered and approached their table, waving in greeting.

"Sup Alya, Marinette," Nino greeted warmly. Adrien turned to greet Marinette with his usual perfect smile that turned her to goo on the inside.

"Hey Marinette! Did you get a manicure? Your nails look great," he complimented as his eyes dropped to the impeccable application of her polish.

The girl's eyes widened as she floundered for words. "Manicure?" Marinette said with a dazed grin.

Alya immediately swooped in to save her, "Yep, manicure by yours truly! I have natural talent, right?"

"You do!" he exclaimed. The boy chuckled and placed his fingers on the desk in plain view, "Honestly, you did a way better job shaping than the guy who did mine."

While Marinette and Nino looked ready to choke, Alya remained as cool as a cucumber. "You should totally come next time we have a nail night."

He laughed, "I just might! I'll pass on the polish, though, if you don't mind."

"Done," Alya agreed easily.

Nino shook his head and plopped down into his seat, having obviously decided to let the conversation go. Adrien turned to sit back down, but paused to meet Marinette's eyes.

"Lavender is a really nice color on you," he complimented, slipping into his seat and facing the front.

There was a beat of silence before Alya snorted, causing Marinette to lose control of her laughter. The girls doubled over in hysterics, almost falling out of their seats as tears streamed down their faces.

Nino placed his headphones over his ears and turned up the volume.

 


	12. Permafrost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya is targeted by one of Hawkmoth's villains, and Ladybug needs to chill.

Alya truly didn't know how she ended up being the target of an akuma attack, but while she clung to Chat Noir's back for dear life as he dodged incoming projectiles, she decided she must have done something pretty awful.

"Any idea where the akuma is?" the feline superhero asked as he pole-vaulted them onto the roof of the next building.

"No? I don't even know why she's mad at me!" Alya exclaimed, a bit too loud next to his sensitive ear. He winced, but said nothing about it.

"Well, I sure hope Ladybug gets here soon, cause- Whoa!" he broke off with a quick shout as he leaped out of the way of the next attack. This particular villain transformed her victims into ice sculptures when hit with her icicles.

"Hold still!" Permafrost shouted, sounding quite put out by her inability to hit the target.

"I think you meant to say  _freeze_ ," Chat Noir quipped, shooting her finger guns before bounding away.

"Are you okay carrying me like this?" Alya asked, noticing that her friend's breathing was becoming less even.

"Yeah, I'm just…a little tired," he panted, readjusting so that Alya wouldn't fall off when he jumped onto the next building.

He belatedly realized that the surface of the roof was coated in a thin layer of ice, and slipped as he touched down. Alya and Chat Noir tumbled and landed in a less-than-graceful heap on the apartment flat. They braced for impact as the icicle whistled through the air, only to be deflected by a familiar red projectile.

"Any longer, My Lady, and I'd be a catcicle!" the leather-clad hero remarked, looking up at her from his tangled position on the ground.

"Good thing I showed up," Ladybug remarked with a confident curve to her lips. Alya saw Chat Noir beginning to get glossy-eyed, and elbowed him roughly.

"Focus, Romeo," Alya stage whispered in response to his glare.

"R-Right," he stuttered, getting to his feet and twirling his baton absentmindedly. "Got a plan?"

Ladybug deflected another icicle and glanced at Alya with a worried expression, "We need to get her to safety. Then we can focus on finding the akumatized item."

Chat Noir helped Alya up and pulled her onto his back again, leaping off of the roof before she'd quite prepared herself, and making her nauseous.

"Ice queen over there sure is fast," Alya commented.

"Yeah, but the question is: what's with her frosty exterior?" Chat Noir quipped, still sounding a bit winded as he ducked into a bell tower and gently placed Alya back down on her feet.

The blogger decided to ignore the bad joke, "I don't know. I don't remember doing anything that could get someone akumatized."

She watched from the bell tower as the blond boy returned to the fight and assisted her best friend in fighting the akuma, throwing out horrible cold-related puns as often as possible.

Alya watched with rapt attention as she recorded the battle on her phone, worrying over her friends as they avoided the icicles. Chat Noir used his Cataclysm to break up the ground so that it wouldn't be as slippery, and the countdown to the end of his transformation began.

Permafrost glared at them both, "I'll like you both better when you're ice sculptures!"

"That's just cold," Chat Noir replied with a cheeky smirk.

Ladybug called for Lucky Charm, and was presented with a random object. She narrowed her eyes as she considered its possible uses, and Chat Noir set about distracting the villain until she could figure it out.

With a wild screech, Permafrost released a volley of projectiles, sending them flying toward Ladybug, instead of Chat Noir. His eyes widened at the unexpected twist, and he launched himself forward without a thought.

Alya gasped and nearly dropped her phone as Chat Noir took the hit for Ladybug and became motionless. In his place stood a very life-like ice sculpture.

A moment of silence passed, and then Ladybug threw herself into the battle with renewed vigor. The sound of the yoyo clashing against icicles echoed through the streets as Alya rushed down the stairs of the bell tower and ran toward the scene.

Her foot caught on a stone, and she nearly took a very graceless tumble. She knew there was nothing she could do to help Adrien, but she still wanted to be closer. By the time she reached the battleground, Ladybug was in the middle of cleansing the akuma.

Tears swam in the superheroine's eyes as she released the white butterfly, her gaze locked on Chat Noir's frozen form. She tossed the Lucky Charm into the air, and it began to reset all of the damage done during the battle.

The last thing to revert to normal was Chat Noir himself.

As his frigid flesh became warm again, he began to slump to the ground, only to be caught by a tearful Ladybug.

She lowered them both to the pavement and embraced him tightly.

"Ladybug?" he murmured against her shoulder, obviously confused about the situation.

"You stupid cat! You can't leave me like that," Ladybug scolded, maintaining her vise-like grip on him as she talked.

"I'm fine, My Lady," he assured her, gently wrapping his arms around her waist in kind.

He stiffened as something wet soaked into the fabric on his shoulder, and realized that the girl of his dreams was crying. Chat Noir pulled back just enough to be able to see her face.

"Why are you crying?" he asked, completely bewildered by the emotional display coming from a girl who had seemed so detached.

She removed a hand from around his neck to scrub at the offending tears, and shot him her best glare, "Because you're an idiot!"

"Oh lighten up, Bugaboo. I'm  _always_  an idiot when it comes to you," he quipped, throwing her a signature Chat Noir smirk.

She rolled her eyes, but the glare softened a bit.

"Have I ever told you that your eyes shine with the light of a thousand stars?" he purred, leaning in ever so slightly.

Ladybug smirked wryly, "I think those lines would work better for you if I didn't have to wonder how many girls you've said them to."

"Only you, Bug," he whispered, an earnest expression on his face.

She stared at him, eyes wide with surprise at his confirmation of Alya's theories. He stared back, an unmistakable longing in his eyes that made her breath catch in her throat.

Before anyone could register what happened, Ladybug closed the distance between them and placed a fleeting kiss on his cheek before extricating herself from his arms and casting her yoyo out. She disappeared over the top of the building and zipped out of sight.

He stared after her, his mouth ajar as his fingers trailed across the skin where her lips had brushed so lightly.

"What just happened?" Alya asked, her expression almost as dazed as the blond superhero's.

"She… She kissed me?" he breathed, uncertainty coloring his tone.

Silence fell between him, and he turned to Alya questioningly.

"She did kiss me, didn't she? I didn't imagine it, right?" Chat Noir asked, face flushing bright red.

"Yeah, I saw it too," Alya confirmed, her eyes narrowing as she gazed out at the point where the spotted superheroine disappeared.

"What do you think it means?" the boy asked, looking heartbreakingly hopeful.

"I think it means someone's gonna get a talking to," Alya muttered. She crossed her arms over her chest as she looked out over the distance.

"What?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Let's get you out of here before you change back," she said. Alya hooked her arm under his elbow and hoisted him up off the ground.

He smiled bashfully, "She's so perfect."

"Nobody's perfect, Cat Boy. You're just infatuated," Alya stated matter-of-factly.

"You're right, I am  _completely_  infatuated," Chat Noir replied, a charismatic smile stretched across his face. His ring beeped, and he glanced down to see that he only had one minute left.

"I'll see you in class!" he called, racing off into the distance and leaving Alya with a dazed akuma victim. The reporter recognized her as an employee of her mother's and leaned over to help her to her feet.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, but what am I doing here? The last thing I remember is my ice sculpture getting broken," the woman explained, looking rather disheartened.

"You were akumatized," Alya explained, and the woman looked like she wanted to cry.

"-but I bet the damage to your statue was undone when Ladybug used her Miraculous Cure!" the blogger assured her, squeezing her hand encouragingly.

"You really think so? Chef Césaire said she was sorry for knocking it over, but I was still so angry that it fell. I should apologize," the woman stated with a hopeful smile.

"I'll walk you back to the hotel! We can check on my mom together," Alya offered, leading the woman down the road.

She waited until she and Marinette were alone in her room after school, before giving her a scrutinizing look.

"Alya, you've been looking at me like that all day. What's up?" the pig-tailed girl asked, looking rather confused.

"Are you falling for Chat Noir?" Alya inquired bluntly.

"What? We're just friends," Marinette assured her, voice rising in pitch.

"Then why'd you give him a kiss?" the blogger asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Alya was honestly feeling conflicted; while she was thrilled that Marinette was beginning to see Chat Noir in a new light, she was upset at her for playing with Adrien's feelings.

"T-To say thank you," she replied, a tad too quickly.

"Friends don't give friends kisses as a show of gratitude," Alya stated in a no-nonsense tone.

"Alya, it was just on his cheek. It wasn't a big deal," Marinette said, waving her friend off.

The blogger groaned and placed her hands on Marinette's shoulders, "Girl, it's a big deal to  _him_. Don't you see that he loves you? If you don't love him back, stuff like that could hurt him, Mari."

The girl's eyes went wide as her best friend's words sunk in, "Oh no! I wasn't thinking! The last thing I want is to hurt Chat Noir. It just…felt right."

Alya smiled and shook her head at the girl's obliviousness, "You really need to think about your feelings for Chat Noir. I think, deep down, you love him back."

Marinette's fingers traced her lips as she remembered the earlier events, "I…I don't know anymore."

Alya shrugged helplessly, "Well-"

The sound of Alya's phone ringing sliced through the air, and she checked the screen to figure out who was calling.

She quickly scooped it up and hit the answer button, "I'm a little busy talking to Marinette. I'll call you back later!"

"No, wait! It'll only take like two seconds," a male voice replied.

Marinette frowned as she tried to figure out whom Alya was talking to, since it didn't sound like Nino.

"I saw your video on the Ladyblog," he began, pausing for dramatic effect.

"No, not the puns," Alya whined.

"And it looks like Chat Noir was a really  _cool cat_  today," he purred, voice practically oozing self-satisfaction.

"Ugh. Why do you do this to me?" the blogger deadpanned.

"Geez, what a  _frosty_  reception," he quipped.

"Is this my punishment for the flowerpot comment? Because I will apologize if it makes this stop," Alya exclaimed.

"Oh, I let the flowerpot comment  _drop_  a long time ago."

"This is  _so_  not the time," Alya wailed.

" _Snow_  time like the present," he replied easily.

The blogger huffed and hit the 'end call' button, glaring at the phone long after it was disconnected.

Marinette's eyebrows drew together in question, "Was that…Chat Noir calling you?"

Alya's lips turned up in a mischievous grin, "It was Adrien."

Marinette's refusal to reveal her identity to Chat Noir couldn't prevent Alya from dropping hints, now could it?

The girl looked even more confused than before, " _Adrien_  made all of those terrible jokes?"

Alya shrugged, "I told you, girl. Nobody's perfect. It just so happens that Adrien is a big fan of the worst puns imaginable."

Marinette looked like she'd just been told that her puppy had died, "Chat Noir's sense of humor is bad enough! I can't handle  _two_  of them!"

Alya slapped her hand to her forehead, "Only you, Marinette. Only you."

 


	13. Expectations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya notices that someone is keeping tabs on Paris's superheroes.

Alya was having minimal luck in just about everything that day. First of all, it was a Monday. That, in and of itself, was just cause for alarm. Secondly, she couldn't seem to stop fumbling her phone, and had managed to crack the screen. Lastly, and most importantly, Nino seemed to constantly be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

A particularly slippery akuma had been terrorizing the city all day, and it was all she could do to act like everything was normal around Nino when all she wanted to do was check in on her favorite superhero duo.

Adrien and Marinette were coming up with consistently terrible excuses to sneak off and fight Hawkmoth's latest creation. Alya was sure that the whole class was convinced that Adrien had the stomach flu by now.

She mentally shrugged, at least it wasn't as bad as Mari's  _akumaphobia_ , as it was dubbed by Kim. Max vehemently insisted that  _akumaphobia_  wasn't a real phobia, but Kim could be rather persistent.

After the fourth interruption of class Ms. Bustier dismissed them until notice of the akuma's purification was given. This freed Alya up to get prime footage for her blog, so after exiting the school, she raced toward loud crashes and explosions.

She caught a flash of Ladybug's red suit, and moved to make her way over to the other side of the street, which would provide a better angle. Ladybug was about to purify the black butterfly, and Alya didn't want to miss it.

She skidded to a stop as she spied a familiar figure.

"Nino, you have two seconds to tell me what you're doing hiding behind these bushes," Alya stated, hands on her hips and an implicit warning in her tone of voice.

"Alya! What're you doing here?" he responded, fidgeting as he avoided meeting her eyes.

"Answer my question first," she demanded, jabbing an accusing finger in his direction.

"Uhh… Just hoping to get an autograph from Chat Noir! He's a cool dude, y'know?" Nino responded, adjusting his glasses.

"Funny. I've never seen you fanboy over Chat Noir  _before_ ," Alya drawled.

Nino suddenly jumped to his feet, placed his hands on the blogger's back, and began pushing her down the street.

"Uh, let's find him!" he exclaimed.

"Nino, I swear-" Alya tensed and prepared to give the DJ a firm talking to about personal space and respecting her autonomy, when she glanced over her shoulder and saw Chat Noir run into an alley behind them to detransform.

"Uh, good idea! Let's get as far away from the battle site as possible, though," Alya agreed, nearly pulling Nino along behind her as she rushed away.

She bounded around a corner with Nino in tow and nearly collided with Marinette, who was stuffing a cookie in her purse.

"Alya! I'm glad you're safe, that battle got pretty out of hand-" Marinette began, looking relieved at the sight of her friend.

Alya made a quick silencing gesture and jabbed a thumb in Nino's direction. The pig-tailed girl immediately backpedaled, "Oh, hi Nino! I'm glad you're okay too!"

"Yeah. Me too, dudette," Nino replied easily.

Marinette's eyes widened, "Oh no! Have either of you seen Adrien? Is he okay?"

Alya opened her mouth to spout off an excuse, but Nino spoke before she got a chance.

"Yeah, he's fine. We both took cover in the locker room, but I took off after the attack to find Chat Noir. Been trying to get his autograph for, like, forever," Nino stated with an encouraging smile.

Alya's eyes narrowed. There was no way Adrien was with Nino if he was fighting alongside Ladybug. Either he slipped away while Nino was distracted, or…

"We need to talk, Lahiffe," Alya proclaimed, grabbing the collar of his shirt and dragging him away, leaving a perplexed Marinette in their wake.

Once they were in a reasonably secluded area of the park, she whirled around and poked him in the chest accusingly.

"You know something you shouldn't."

Nino chuckled and adjusted his hat, "Why would I? Isn't snooping around usually  _your_  thing?"

The girl crossed her arms, unimpressed. "Yeah, and that's why you should leave that stuff to me."

The boy laughed and tucked his hands into his pockets, "Alya. Chill out, will ya?"

"I will, as soon as you tell me how much you know," she stated, leaving no room for argument.

Nino shrugged, "About what? If it's video games, I think that's Marinette's thing."

She stared into his eyes, as if searching for something within their depths. Nino tilted his head to the side questioningly, and she caught a faint glimmer of mischief.

A slow smile spread across her face as she leaned in closer, poking out her lower lip in a pout that was sure to put a dent in his resolve.

"You really won't tell me?" she murmured, fiddling with the bill of his hat flirtatiously. Nino blushed, his olive skin turning a nice shade of salmon, but he didn't waver.

"About video games?" he replied, the playfulness in his eyes becoming more apparent.

Alya gazed at him in a mixture of frustration and awe, and her glare softened as admiration won out.

"I gotta hand it to you, Lahiffe. You're one trustworthy guy," she commented, a wide grin stretched over her face.

Nino blushed again, and fidgeted under the praise.

"I-I guess," he stammered.

"So, do you wanna go get smoothies before we head back to class?" Alya suggested, looping her arm through his with a bright smile.

"Anything for my girl," Nino replied, tipping his hat comically.

" _Your_  girl? I don't belong to  _anyone_. Especially not to some DJ who hasn't even asked me out yet," Alya snarked, flipping her hair.

"Wanna go out?" Nino asked.

"No. Because I had to  _tell_  you to ask," she replied, glaring at him with a fire in her eyes.

"I have a feeling that's the way things are gonna be from now on," Nino replied easily.

"Don't steal lines from the Sunshine Child," the blogger admonished with a half-hearted shove.

"Ha! I knew you'd break first," Nino exclaimed with an undignified snort.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Alya sniffed.

Nino eyed her appraisingly for a while, then smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "I think you do."

With that, he took her hand and led her into the smoothie shop.

"Seriously, though. Why were you hiding behind a bush?"

"I was being discreet."

"Cause hiding behind a bush like a creep is  _soo_  discreet.

"Shut up."


	14. Resolve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The moment you've all been waiting for! Or, more accurately, the moment you all forgot about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The moment you probably haven't been waiting for.

"Dude. No," Nino deadpanned, replacing his headphones and trying to drown out his best friend's argument.

"I need you, Nino! I can't do this on my own," Adrien whined, splaying himself out over the desk in a dramatized act of desolation. Alya rolled her eyes at his display, but couldn't keep the smile from turning the corners of her lips upward.

"I love ya, bro. But this is something you gotta do on your own," Nino replied, turning up the volume of his music to mask Adrien's protests.

Adrien groaned as he buried his face in his arms, slumping down further than Alya thought possible.

"You don't have to go if you don't want to, Adrien," Marinette offered, hand hovering over his shoulder like she wanted to touch him but was uncertain as to whether it would melt her hand or not.

His head shot up and he locked eyes with his pig-tailed classmate.

"No, I'm definitely coming!" he declared, emerald eyes full of resolve.

Alya grinned, "Great! I'm going at six, so get there anytime after that!"

"Ohhhh Adri-kins," a sing-song voice called from across the classroom. Adrien visibly stiffened, and plastered a friendly smile on his face as he turned to face Chloe.

"Hey, Cho. What's up?" he asked, knowing very well that her tone meant trouble.

"I heard you have a free night, so I bought tickets to see that new Rom-Com," she told him, flashing a confident smile as she leaned over the table to lock eyes with him.

"I thought that premiere was next week?" Adrien asked, looking utterly confused.

"Oh, I just had the  _mayor_  put in a good word, and I was able to arrange a private showing at the best cinema in town. It'll be  _just you and me_ ," she murmured, a flirty smile on her face.

He looked horrified, and Nino jumped in before he had to reply.

"Sorry Chloé, dude's already got plans for tonight!" Nino explained, throwing an arm around Adrien's shoulders and watching Chloé's face twist with anger. She immediately schooled it into a smile and reached forward to tap Adrien's nose.

"That's fine. We'll just spend time together  _next time_ ," Chloé stated, a sickly sweet note in her voice.

"You can't take a hint, huh?" Lila interjected, drawing attention to herself where she stood beside the blonde girl. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and a self-satisfied smirk adorned her face.

"Hmph! I'm not the one chasing after a mangy stray," Chloé sniffed, turning her nose up at the new arrival.

A loud chorus rang out over the classroom, "He's  _not_  mangy!"

All four speakers turned to look at each other in surprise. Alya's eyes darted between Marinette, Nino, and Lila as she processed that they'd all shouted the same thing at the same time.

Lila seemed invigorated by her unexpected backup, "He's selfless and kind! He always saves me in the nick of time, and he's drop-dead gorgeous!"

Adrien's face flushed, and he tried to hide behind his notebook.

"Not nearly as gorgeous as Adrien. Right Marinette?" Chloé asserted, turning to Marinette of all people for confirmation. Everyone's eyes were on her as she turned beet red.

"Uh, I! I! Know don't! D-Don't know!" she stuttered, looking dazed by the question.

"Ugh, the one time I think you'll actually be useful!" Chloé snarled, turning on her heel and marching away to her desk.

Alya snickered, "I thought you were after Adrien, Lila."

The brunette flipped her hair over her shoulder and waved a hand flippantly.

"Adrien's cute and all, but I'm over him. No offense," she tacked on with a pleasant smile.

"None taken," Adrien replied easily, though the way his shoulders relaxed showed immense relief at this development.

"But Chat Noir is totally  _hot_ ," Lila explained, a dreamy expression on her face.

Adrien spluttered, and Lila glanced at him questioningly.

Nino clapped his hands over Adrien's ears, and Alya grinned mischievously. The boy just couldn't catch a break.

"You can't  _say_  things like that in front of Adrien," Nino warned, a solemn expression on his face.

"He's too pure for this world," Alya stage-whispered, earning an elbow to the ribs from Marinette.

Lila giggled and ruffled Adrien's hair before sauntering off to her seat. An awkward silence settled upon the four friends.

"So, this means you're coming too, right?" Adrien asked, shooting Nino a pleading look.

"No way, man. I was just covering for you," Nino replied.

"You're gonna leave me all alone?" the blond boy whimpered.

"Nope. You'll have Mari and Alya. They're great company," the DJ countered, upping the volume on his music once more.

Marinette sighed longingly as she watched Adrien argue with Nino, and Alya resisted the urge to roll her eyes at just how oblivious the girl was.

"Dude, no way am I going over to Marinette's for  _Nail Night_. Too girly," Nino nearly shouted, and set his jaw stubbornly.

Adrien blinked in surprise, and then his lips turned upward in a roguish grin that Marinette nearly swooned at. Alya thought it was remarkable that her best friend still hadn't recognized that Chat Noir smirk yet.

"Nino, I put the  _man_  in  _man_ icure."

"The answer is still no."

 


	15. Hand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The theme of this one shot is actually a really cool bit of advice from a wise friend of mine. It stuck with me, obviously, so I'd like to share it with you!

A gentle breeze blew though the Parisian streets, softening the heat from the midday sun. Alya walked on the sidewalk beside her best friend, and used their joined hands to swing their arms between them.

It was a bit childish, but neither of them particularly cared.

Marinette giggled at her friend's antics, "Are we gonna start skipping next?"

Alya grinned and increased their pace, "You read my mind!"

Both girls laughed as they skipped down the street drawing attention from several other pedestrians along the way. An old woman on a park bench smiled when she saw them pass, and a young mother chuckled as she held her daughter's hand.

After a few minutes of skipping, Alya began to slow.

"Okay, I'm getting tired," she huffed, releasing Marinette's hand so as to fan herself.

Marinette snickered and poked Alya in the stomach. "You need to get into shape!" she said.

Alya placed her hands on her hips, "Well excuse me for not being a secret gymnast like you."

The pig-tailed girl laughed and shook her head. "You don't have to be a gymnast to be in shape," Marinette said.

The pedestrians on the other side of the street started to surge forward, each person in a rush to arrive at their destination.

"Oh, we have the walk signal now," Alya exclaimed, pointing at the sign across the crosswalk. The two girls made their way across the street and into the ice cream parlor.

The glass case at the front held an assortment of flavors, and Marinette's eyes lit up with anticipation. Alya smiled and shook her head; Marinette looked like a kid in a candy store.

"Oh no! How will I ever choose?" the girl lamented, peering through the glass.

"Don't you normally get strawberry?" Alya asked.

Marinette giggled and wrung her hands, "I guess so. Even with so many options, I usually just go for what's familiar."

Alya hummed thoughtfully, "So do you want to be comfortable or adventurous?"

The pigtailed girl shrugged. "I don't know. I suppose I can't have both, can I?" she asked

The blogger pointed to the menu that was displayed on the wall, "You could always get a double scoop."

Marinette beamed, "Then I could get strawberry  _and_  another flavor I've never tried before!"

"Exactly," Alya replied with a confident grin.

Marinette ended up getting a scoop of chocolate caramel swirl on top of her strawberry scoop, and Alya had a heaping serving of mint chocolate chip atop her cone.

They exited the ice cream shop, and Alya turned to Marinette, who was thoroughly engrossed in her dessert.

"So how's your adventurous flavor?" the blogger asked, lightly tapping her friend with her elbow.

"Honestly, I think I like it even more than the strawberry!" Marinette exclaimed, taking another lick off of her ice cream cone.

"And you never would've known if you hadn't taken a chance," Alya remarked as she gave her friend an encouraging smile.

"Taken a chance?" Marinette murmured, seemingly lost in thought. Her foot caught on the raised edge of the sidewalk, and Alya tried to call out a warning as she lost her balance and went toppling forward. The city spun around her as she flailed to catch herself.

Her ice cream cone shattered as it hit the ground, and the heels of her hands scraped against the pavement.

"Whoa! Watch your step, Princess. You could've gotten seriously hurt," Chat Noir called, dropping down from the rooftops and landing in a crouch in front of her.

He straightened up and offered a hand to help her up. Marinette's eyes locked on the remains of her ice cream cone. The adventurous flavor had been her favorite, and she was sad to see it spattered on the pavement like that.

Her gaze ultimately drifted to Chat Noir's extended hand and then trailed up to his face, where his kind green eyes watched her with concern. Chat Noir's smile was soft, very unlike his usual cocky grin.

Alya's prior words echoed in her mind.

"And you never would've known if you hadn't taken a chance."

She took his hand.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Do you want to be comfortable, or do you want to be adventurous? That's the question you have to ask yourself."


	16. Spell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You thought I was done talking about fingernails? Guess again!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a reminder that this was written before the premier of Season 2, and is a Canon Divergent AU. Anything that is in S2 doesn't exist here!

Marinette propped her head up on her arm, careful of her wet nails, and gazed at Alya with a pensive expression.

"What's up, Mari?" Alya asked, reading the situation with practiced ease.

The girl bit her lip nervously and looked up at the ceiling, "What was your first kiss like, Alya?"

The blogger gazed back at her kindly and tapped her chin as she thought, "Well, it was okay, I guess. It was with a guy I liked back at my old school, but that relationship didn't really work out."

Marinette's blue eyes flashed with an unreadable expression, "Do you regret it?"

Alya shook her head, "No. Sometimes I think it would be better if I'd waited a while, but you can't change the past. Besides, our experiences make us who we are. I like who I am."

Marinette seemed to think that over for a while, and nodded eventually. "Yeah, that makes sense," she murmured.

"Are you asking because you're nervous about getting your first kiss, girl? It'll happen when it happens. No sense in worrying about it!" Alya advised sagely.

Marinette's face flushed a deep red, "Uh, y-yes! That's exactly why I'm asking!"

Alya's gaze became calculating as she stared her best friend down. Marinette tried her best to maintain a poker-face, but she couldn't help but to buckle under the pressure.

"No. Way. You've already had your first kiss, and you didn't tell me?" Alya wailed, looking betrayed.

Marinette threw her hands up, gesturing wildly, "No! It wasn't a real kiss, I only did it because everyone was fighting each other because of an akuma!"

Alya's eyes narrowed dangerously behind her glasses, "Spill."

"It was Dark Cupid! He was shooting everyone with arrows, and you got shot with an arrow and said you hated me, and then I chased after him. And then Chat Noir was being  _Chat Noir_ , so he took an arrow for me and teamed up with Dark Cupid to try to take my Miraculous! He was fighting me and saying some pretty awful things under the influence of the akuma, and then he said that "hate conquers all", which reminded me of what we studied in class that day! So I only kissed him to break the spell!" Marinette ended her rant and took a deep breath.

Alya blinked as she processed her friend's story.

"Your first kiss was with Chat Noir?" she checked, not trusting her comprehension of Marinette's convoluted story.

"To break the spell," Marinette clarified, still looking slightly red in the face.

"To break the spell," Alya parroted, still looking confused.

"Yes," the pigtailed girl replied, taking Alya's silence as a good sign.

Alya's face split into a mischievous grin, "You liked it, didn't you?"

Though her friend shook her head and denied it vehemently, the color of her face was all the confirmation Alya needed.

"You  _did_! You liked it!" Alya screeched, pointing her finger accusingly at her friend.

"Is he a good kisser?" the blogger pressed, leaning forward with interest.

"I-I don't really have anything to compare it to," Marinette mumbled, twisting her pigtail between her fingers.

"Would you do it again, if you had the chance?" Alya inquired, smiling impishly.

Marinette's face became even redder, if at all possible.

"N-No! I don't think so," the pig-tailed girl stammered, as if trying to convince herself.

"You  _do_  know that only a special kind of kiss will break magical spells, right?" Alya remarked, examining her unpainted nails.

"A special kind…?" Marinette murmured, furrowing her brow.

"Girl, only  _true love's_  kiss will break a magical spell. That's common knowledge," Alya explained matter-of-factly.

"True love's kiss!?" Marinette exclaimed, before burying her face in her hands.

"Um, is this a bad time?" a voice drifted to them from the open hatch on the floor.

"Adrien!" Marinette squeaked, peeking through her fingers at the boy whose head was peering up at them from the hatch.

"I did knock, but I guess you didn't hear me," he murmured shyly, running his fingers through his hair.

Marinette laughed, "We didn't! Sorry, Alya and I were talking, so I wasn't paying attention."

"I can wait downstairs if you want to finish your conversation," he offered cheerfully.

"No way, come on up! You have to get the full experience of Nail Night," Alya insisted. She patted the spot on the floor beside her invitingly.

The blond beamed and nimbly hopped up the rest of the way, landing on Marinette's floor in a graceful crouch before shifting into a sitting position.

Alya rolled her eyes at him, thinking it was a good thing she and Marinette were the only witnesses to his gymnastics display, since the girl absolutely refused to see the connection between him and her crime-fighting partner.

At this point, Alya doubted it was simple obliviousness that kept Marinette from figuring out Chat Noir's identity.

"So, what were you guys talking about?" Adrien asked, leaning back on his elbows and flashing a smile at Marinette.

Alya made a mental note to ask Adrien if his flirting with Marinette was intentional later.

"Nothing! Nothing at all!" Marinette screeched, flushing bright red.

The model bit his lip, "Oh, girl stuff. Sorry."

Alya snickered, "It was  _not_  just girl stuff. Men are interested in romance too, Mari."

If Adrien had been transformed, Alya was sure his cat ears would have perked up at that.

"Romance?" he asked, looking very intrigued. Marinette also looked quite intrigued by his reaction.

"Well, true love's kiss, specifically," Alya explained, trying to keep her grin under control.

"Oh, like we talked about in class on Valentine's Day?" he clarified, an excited gleam in his eye.

Alya knew she had him at that point; the boy was a hopeless romantic.

"Yeah, we were talking about how  _only_  true love's kiss can break a magical spell. Marinette said it didn't have to be true love to break the spell," the blogger stated confidently.

Adrien cocked his head to the side; "I think the whole concept of a kiss being able to break a spell is based on the idea that love is so powerful that it can overcome anything, so I don't know that just any kiss would do the trick, y'know?"

Marinette's eyes widened in horror as Adrien's logic hit home, and she clapped a hand over her mouth; Alya nodded enthusiastically.

"But unfortunately, I don't think true love's kiss works in real life," Adrien commented with a wry smile.

"Of course it does. It broke the spell Chat Noir was under when Dark Cupid attacked," Alya assured him with a carefully neutral expression as she filed her nails.

When she glanced back up, Adrien and Marinette wore matching expressions of shock. They truly were perfect for each other.

" _What_  broke the spell?" Adrien asked after finding his voice again.

"A kiss," Alya deadpanned.

Marinette's face drained of color.

"F-From who?" Adrien squeaked.

Alya locked eyes with the boy, savoring his confusion.

"Ladybug, of course," she replied, her gaze unwavering.

His jaw dropped as he stared back, waiting for her to admit that it was just a joke.

Alya's blank expression morphed into a knowing smirk, and Adrien blanched.

"I have to use the restroom," he yelped, zipping out through the trapdoor with Chat Noir speed, leaving behind a pale Marinette and a cackling Alya.

 


	17. Latte

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Drabbley followup to the events of "Expectations"

Alya sat across from Nino at their favorite café, sipping her latte as she thought. Nino stared down at his own drink and stirred it aimlessly.

"Nino. We've got to get them together," she asserted, slamming her drink down on the table.

Nino was grateful there was a top on it that prevented him from being covered in latte. He discreetly covered his own beverage and scooted it further away from the Ladyblogger.

"Adrien's a total sap. Dude could use some romance," Nino agreed, adjusting his glasses.

"Exactly! We just need to give them the right push," Alya exclaimed, bringing her hands together with a clap.

"Uhh…How're we gonna do that?" Nino deadpanned.

Alya flicked her wrist dismissively, "Oh, I don't think that'll be hard. After all, she's perfect for him."

Nino shrugged, "I mean, you know her way better than I do."

Alya shot him a glare and crossed her arms, "Even if you don't know her as well as I do, you know enough to see that they're perfect for each other!"

"Well, you did say something about Ladybug and Chat Noir being, like, Yin and Yang, or whatever," Nino said, taking a long sip of his coffee.

"Ah, so you  _have_  been listening," Alya commented with a satisfied nod.

The boy narrowed his eyes at his almost-girlfriend, "Well, duh. I'm pretty invested in this too. My bro's gotta get his Lady."

Alya bobbed her head enthusiastically.

"For sure. I think our main problem is getting Ladybug to notice Chat Noir. Mari's so hung up on Adrien that she isn't giving  _Adrien_  a chance," Alya stated in a hushed voice, looking rather exasperated at her friend's obliviousness.

Nino blinked at her, "Wait.  _Marinette_  is Ladybug?"

Alya's smile fell, "Aw crap."


	18. Diabolical

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another drabbley update!
> 
> Plagg centric, though. That has to count for something.

If there was one thing Plagg loved – other than cheese – it was good, old-fashioned teasing. His love for this avenue of making others uncomfortable was what sparked his collaboration with the owner of the Ladyblog.

They had a silent agreement; Plagg would tease Adrien about his "not-a-crush" on Marinette, and Alya would subtly point out the girl's similarities to Ladybug.

At some point, the silent agreement became a not-so-silent agreement.

It was simple, it was effective, and it was downright diabolical.

The best part of it was that Adrien thought he was going crazy for seeing similarities between Ladybug and his gentle classmate.

Of course, when he saw qualities of his 'Love Bug' in the Princess, he began to recognize that his feelings for the girl who sat behind him weren't simply platonic.

Plagg cackled as he watched his Chosen pace around the room for the seventh time that week. He stealthily snagged the phone off of the bedside table and retreated into Adrien's oversized closet, phoning the Ladyblogger.

"Hello?"

"It's Plagg. Operation Maribug is nearing completion," he announced, feeling rather satisfied with his work for the day.

"Is that Adrien yelling in the background?" Alya asked.

"Yeah. He'll be fine," Plagg remarked dismissively.

"Are you sure? He sounds really upset," the girl asked, concern dripping from her voice.

"He just realized that he's got feelings for  _his princess_ ," Plagg snickered.

"What!? Really?" Alya squealed on the other line.

Plagg winced, "Hey, watch the volume! I've got sensitive ears."

"Sorry. Thanks for the update," she said.

Plagg examined his paw with disinterest, "Any luck with Ladybug?"

Alya groaned, and Plagg shook his head. For someone so smart, that Marinette could be so dense.


	19. Fishy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nino meets Plagg. He is concerned.

Nino stared into a pair of mischievous green eyes, wondering when his life became so weird. It honestly started around the same time Adrien came into his life. Mostly _because_ Adrien came into his life.

Though that was true, he still couldn't find it in himself to be upset with the boy.

"Name's Plagg. I'm Adrien's  _real_  best friend," the floating cat creature stated, a wicked smirk on his face.

Nino narrowed his eyes at the little thing, "Alya told me about you. Said you give my bro a hard time."

Plagg yawned and waved his arm dismissively, "All in good fun."

The DJ looked unconvinced, and Plagg turned toward him with a gaze that seemed rather bored.

"You haven't told him you know yet. Not that I care, but why?" the cat kwami asked, his eyes unblinking.

Nino shrugged, "It hasn't come up. If I think he should know, I'll tell him."

"Oh. That's much less interesting than I thought," Plagg remarked.

"What'd you think I was gonna say?" Nino asked, adjusting the cap on his head.

The black cat grinned, showing off his pointed teeth, "That you wanted to watch him squirm."

"I don't know if I like you, little dude," Nino stated honestly.

Plagg snickered, "That's fair. I think you're okay, though. You're much less dramatic than all the other teenagers. Though that  _does_ mean you're less fun to watch."

"Uh, thanks?" Nino said, his voice rising a few octaves toward the end.

"It wasn't a compliment," Plagg remarked, before ducking down into the trashcan and disappearing from sight.

He must have heard Adrien coming.

"Sorry about that, Nino! My dietician took longer to scold me than I thought she would," Adrien called as he entered the room, a sheepish smile on his face.

"Really? What's she so mad about?" Nino asked, eyebrows knitting together with concern.

"Mostly that I've been losing too much weight. She's increasing my calorie intake, so that's awesome," Adrien explained.

"Sounds like there's a 'but' coming," Nino pointed out.

"Yeah, she wants me to start eating more seafood. Something about vitamins, I think. I'm not really against it, but seafood's not my favorite," Adrien admitted, rubbing his neck nervously.

Nino laughed, "I'm sure it'll be fine. Plenty of fish puns to work with."

Adrien grinned, "I guess there  _cod_  be an upside."

The bespectacled boy chuckled, "See?"

"I do have a few lines I've been dying to  _trout_ ," Adrien continued with a flourish.

"That one really  _tanked_ ," Nino replied with a blank expression.

" _Water_  you thinking? It was  _fin_ tastic."

"What a load of carp," Nino stated, a smile threatening to crack his stony expression.

"You're right, that one was  _reel_  painful," Adrien remarked, shaking with laughter at Nino's participation.

A bout of high pitched snickering emanated from the trashcan, and Adrien shot the waste bin a glare before giving it a good kick.

Nino pretended he didn't hear the tiny "Ouch" that resonated from the container.

* * *


	20. Thunder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nothing goes according to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is Chapter 20, and as such, is an important plot point. Get ready for some story advancement.

Alya huffed and slumped against the wall, looking rather defeated.

"Uh, don't feel too bad. Locking them in the janitor's closet wasn't your  _best_  plan," Nino stated, placing a comforting hand on his girlfriend's shoulder.

"How was I supposed to know Marinette could pick locks?" Alya wailed, scrubbing at her face in frustration.

Nino awkwardly patted her shoulder, and the blogger sighed.

"Okay, you're right. It wasn't a very good plan anyway," she admitted.

"Yeah. Too bad we can't trap them together when their timers are counting down," Nino said.

Alya's face lit up. "Nino! That's the solution!"

He gave her a flat look, "We can't do that, Alya. Ladybug and Chat Noir could just kick down the door."

Alya deflated and hung her head in defeat. Nino moved to comfort her, but before he was able to, she perked up. A grin stretched across her face, and Nino cringed.

 

That look could only mean trouble.

...

"This way, Ladybug!"

"Hurry, Alya!" the spotted superheroine stage-whispered, as her friend pulled her through the crowded halls of the school. The blogger turned a corner and Ladybug skidded around it behind her.

"There!" Alya shouted, pointing to the same closet she'd locked them in before. Ladybug had no time to argue, so she rushed in and moved to pull the door shut behind her.

"Ahh! Chat Noir!" she squeaked.

"M-My Lady?" he stammered from inside the closet.

Her earrings gave one final beep, and she slammed the door shut behind her, plunging them both into darkness. Simultaneous flashes of pink and green emitted from beneath the door, and Alya nearly squealed with excitement.

A few seconds passed, and Alya waited anxiously to hear their reactions, but nothing but hushed whispers came from the closet. The door slowly cracked open, and Adrien poked his head out, lowering the hand that covered his eyes so that he could check to see if there were any witnesses.

Upon realizing that it was only Alya, he stepped out and shut the door behind him. He sighed and gave her a sad smile, "You should leave so Ladybug can come out in a few minutes."

She nodded mutely and watched as he went around the corner and disappeared. A few seconds later, Marinette peeked out and noticed Alya standing there.

"Is the coast clear?" she asked, looking rather paranoid.

"Yeah, nobody's out here except for me," Alya replied.

Marinette stepped out of the closet and straightened her jacket with a relieved expression on her face.

"Wow, that was a close one! If I hadn't shut the door, Chat would've seen me," she remarked, smiling at her best friend as if she'd solved a major problem by thinking her way out of the situation with Chat Noir.

Alya slapped a hand to her face.

…

"I've tried everything, Tikki! Locking them in a closet, having Mari drop in on Adrien unexpectedly, my patented Ultimate Guilt-Trip™, an attempt to get Adrien to accidentally transform in front of her, pun wars… Nothing is working!" Alya lamented from her spot on Marinette's bed.

The owner of the bed was downstairs assisting her parents with the lunch rush in the bakery. She informed Alya that she would be up shortly with lunch and cookies, which she truly needn't explain, since Alya had been over nearly every Saturday for the past three months.

"I don't know what to tell you, Alya. None of my ideas worked either," Tikki commiserated, sprawling out next to Alya with an exasperated look on her sweet face.

"Maybe I haven't been subtle enough. Maybe I should just work on convincing her to tell him her identity," the blogger suggested, glaring at the ceiling.

"I wish it were that easy," Tikki murmured.

Alya sat up and looked at her with a smile, "Tikki! You should convince her to tell him. She'll listen to you."

The kwami gave her a dubious look. "I don't know," the kwami said.

"Come on, Tikki! You're my secret weapon," Alya exclaimed, pumping her fist in the air with excitement.

Tikki giggled and clasped her tiny hands together, "Well, I don't know how successful I'll be, but I'll give it my best shot!"

Alya smiled, "That's all I ask for."

…

Marinette and Alya sat on her bed reading magazines and occasionally commenting on celebrity gossip.

"Marinette?" a small voice interrupted, drawing both girls' attention to the red sprite who floated in the air before them.

Marinette smiled warmly, "What is it, Tikki?"

"It might be time," she stated, an uncharacteristically serious expression on her face.

"Time for what?" Marinette asked, shifting on the bed so that she was sitting up straight.

Tikki glanced out the window at the gathering clouds, her eyes full of emotion.

"Marinette, everything is about balance. The choice of whether or not to tell Chat Noir your identity was yours. I can only offer you my advice, and  _you_  must be the one to decide whether to use it," Tikki explained, a knowing look in her eyes.

"You think I should tell Chat Noir my identity?" Marinette asked, looking a bit curious and slightly afraid.

"I think it would bring more balance to your life than you realize," Tikki said with a bright smile.

Alya nodded enthusiastically, and Marinette looked out the window as well.

"If you think it's a good idea, Tikki…I'll think about it," Marinette concluded.

Alya and Tikki high-fived when Marinette wasn't looking.

* * *

 

"So what's the hold up?" a whiny voice demanded from his spot on Adrien's couch.

Alya huffed and slouched down, "She decided not to tell him."

Plagg's slitted eyes narrowed dangerously, "Seriously?"

"Seriously." Alya grumbled, crossing her arms.

The cat kwami was silent for a few minutes – an amazing and terrifying occurrence – before he finally spoke.

"Well then,  _she asked for it_."

"Excuse me?" the blogger inquired, concerned about the finality in Plagg's voice.

His cat-like eyes flashed alarmingly, "I can make it happen, but I need Tikki's cooperation."

Alya tilted her head questioningly, and Plagg let out a harsh laugh, "I have the power of chaos and misfortune; you don't think I can focus it? I need little miss sunshine to step aside if it's gonna work though, because she can neutralize my bad luck if she protects her girl from me."

Alya regarded the cat creature with a mixture of awe and suspicion, "Mari's not gonna get hurt, is she?"

He rolled his eyes at her, "I'm several thousands of years old. I know how to focus my energy, so don't underestimate me."

"Sorry, you're just so-" Alya began, trailing off as words failed her.

"Awe-inspiring? I know. I get that a lot," Plagg drawled, giving Alya the most well-perfected attitude she'd ever seen. If she weren't supposed to be annoyed, she'd be trying to take notes.

She visited Tikki later that day, and the kwami looked rather put out by the idea Alya presented.

"You want me to let Plagg place a bad luck influence on Marinette?" Tikki repeated, her tiny arms crossed as she regarded Alya with something akin to surprise.

Alya held her hands up in a placating gesture, "I'm just telling you his idea. If it's a bad one, we don't have to do it."

Tikki's blue eyes narrowed, and she prepared to tell the blogger why exactly she disliked Plagg's idea, when another idea occurred to her.

Alya watched Tikki's disapproving frown morph into a smile, "Okay. I'll allow it, but only if he allows  _me_  to influence Adrien. Our powers work best when used together, after all."

The blogger grinned slyly, "Perfect! I'll let him know what you said, and then we can get started!"

She met with Nino for dinner and smiled the entire time they were on their date. He looked more than mildly concerned, but knew enough to wait for her to talk. She'd burst eventually, and then he'd know what she was thinking.

He was walking her home when she couldn't hold it in any longer.

"Nino, I have a good feeling about this," she squealed, clasping her hands together with an excited bounce.

The boy smiled and shook his head. "You say that about every plan," he said.

Alya cackled wildly, "This time's different!"

Nino frowned and stared at her with a questioning look in his eye, "How?"

"It's Plagg's plan," the girl stated, her grin full of mischief.

Nino's frown deepened, "Plagg? You're kidding."

"I'm not. He's totally in."

The boy sighed and shook his head, "And that's a  _good_  thing? Little dude's ruthless."

Alya shrugged, "That's just a risk I'm willing to take."

...

The wind rustled the leaves of the trees as it filtered through the amazingly calm park. A few drops of water rained down intermittently as a calm drizzle peppered the trees.

Mere minutes before, the space had been filled with the chaos of a heated Akuma battle, and Ladybug marveled at the immense difference in atmosphere. It was amazing how the Miraculous Cure managed to set thing right so absolutely.

She moved to find the victim, since she still had three spots left on her earrings, and realized that Alya had already helped them from the park to find their loved ones, leaving only Ladybug and Chat Noir behind.

The superheroes' eyes met, and the air was charged with nearly palpable energy. Chat Noir grinned and raised his hand for their customary fist-bump, Ladybug returned the smile and raised her fist.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she registered that Alya returned from walking the affected person out, and that the rain was beginning to pick up. Thunder rumbled in the distance as she lightly bumped her fist against her partner's.

Suddenly, there was a flash of light, and Ladybug found herself standing before a slack-jawed Chat Noir in the middle of the park as Marinette.

It didn't make sense. She still had three more spots left.

Marinette didn't have time to think of much else, because, just as it had happened to her, Chat Noir's transformation released well before it should have.

A flabbergasted Adrien Agreste stood before her, and she wondered just how she managed to miss all the obvious signs.

"T-Tikki!" Marinette stuttered, glancing over at her kwami for an explanation.

The red sprite shrugged, an odd gleam in her eye, "You accidentally willed the transformation away. I suppose it was just bad luck, Marinette."

The black cat kwami erupted into full-scale maniacal laughter, rolling around in the air and holding his stomach. Marinette noted that he seemed utterly unfazed by the rain, unlike a real cat.

Adrien's shocked expression morphed into an unimpressed scowl as he stared his kwami down, and Alya muffled her own laughter at the situation, hoping to avoid the Sunshine Child's wrath.

Plagg wiped tears from his eyes as his laughter died down, "You should see your faces!"

"Plagg," Tikki began, disapproval in her tone.

The other kwami's slitted eyes bored into hers with smug indifference, "What're you getting so worked up about? You were in on this little plan too, Goody Two-Shoes."

"That doesn't mean you get to be cruel," Tikki clarified with a huff.

Marinette's eyes widened, " _Tikki!?_ "

The red kwami nearly choked at having given herself away, and Plagg howled with glee once again.

Alya gave up on her endeavor to keep her giggles under wraps, and devolved into a laughing fit.

Marinette's gaze went from her best friend to Plagg, and finally settled on Adrien, who was still shooting the cat kwami a dirty look. His blond hair was damp, and a single droplet of water trickled down his nose before falling to the ground.

A smile tugged at the corners of her lips, and his green eyes darted over to meet her gaze.

The pig-tailed girl giggled, breaking the silence between them as she joined in with Alya and Plagg's laughter. Adrien's gaze softened as he watched her, and soon all five of them were laughing at the top of their lungs.

A clap of thunder echoed through the park, and the rain began to pour down in sheets. It did nothing to halt the laughter that spilled forth from the drenched teens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first chapter of part 2 should be up shortly!


End file.
